Thoughts on the OCC-Assertion

[llybian]

By and large, fanfiction authors try to keep characters well… in character (there has to be a less dumb-sounding way to say that). Sometimes their efforts fail, sometimes they end up basing this “in-character-ness” on other fanfiction which causes character decay, sometimes they don’t even care, sometimes they’re twelve-year-old fangirls who just

Comments

[dqbunny]

I really hope that my Gourry is one of those that straddles the line. I'm not sure if you've read my stuff or not to be honest. But, yes, it can be hard because your version of IC might differ from someone else's version of IC because they've seen/heard different stuff from you. Even my version of in-character has changed as I've seen/read more of the Slayers canon.

But, I do take the road of Gourry not being stupid. To me, stupid implies that you sit in a corner drooling and not capable of doing anything. I think part of the problem is that Kanzaka himself dumbed down Gourry in later novels a bit. But questions and situations in the anime were completely different in the novels. I did a big write-up about it before Revolution/Evolution-R came out. And even in episode 1 of Revolution, when Gourry claimed he forgot Amelia and Zel ... he really didn't. He was teasing Lina again

[dqbunny]

(Ack, got cut off.)

Gourry's a mercenary. He would have had to use other skills beyond his sword in order to survive that.

As for the nobility thing ... yeah ... at the most, the Gabrievs would have been very minor nobility. Not peasants or the merchant class, but knight status which is the lowest end of the totem pole there - and that's only because they have the Sword of Light.

I agree that Xelloss gets a variety of interpretations as well.

[llybian]

I guess it really depends on how you define "stupid" or if you want to use a less harsh synonym because I don't really mean "drooling moron" when I say stupid.

It is interesting to see the different perspectives in different medium, but to be honest... I still have made the choice to write for the anime. Not only does it have the information most easily available to me, but it's what I fell in love with from the start.

And I'm glad to here what you said about the only minor nobility thing, because the way someone was telling it to *me* it seemed like they were a very high class bunch which didn't make any sense to me.

That's what you get with complicated characters ;) They're fun, but it's a hard line to walk.

[dqbunny]

Exactly. You write to what you know. My earliest Slayers pieces were done with just seeing the anime. It wasn't until a few months later that I had read the first four novels and saw scans of Aqualord, translating it out for myself. As I've read/seen more stuff, what I know has changed, and so does the interpretation of the characters

[psychosongtress]

First, when I read about Xellos, I had 'Into The Woods' Playing and the line, "Nice, is different than good" came on and I thought it was PERFECT TIMING!

I agree with what you say about gourry. I think he lacks a lot of common sense, however he has the ability to see things others can't because of his different way's of thinking.

You have a very good argument about all this.

[llybian]

XD I've only watched part of Into the Woods (gotta finish it!) but that line really reminded me of him.

In some ways, I think Gourry's the character that I see the most disparaty in how people view him... which is weird, because it's all a matter of degrees.

[redhoundstooth]

Ahhh you have no idea how much I love this entry!

I think characterization is what fanfiction writers struggle with the most--IMO most writers don't even recognize that they have a problem. (I try to be cautiously aware that I have an issue with this too, even if people say otherwise.) It's as you said, everyone has a different view of the universe.

[llybian]

:D Yay!

It's tough because especially when you're dealing with a show that has different writers on different episodes, then *canon* can be 'out of character'. And then if you're going to think that way then you can just pick and choose what you like and ignore what you dislike and... argh... @_@ it becomes a mess.

[dracomaleficium]

You know what? I'm so glad that people actually worry about stuff like that. I read the entire argument and the comments that followed, and at the back of my mind, there was this delighted notion: "It's so wonderful that people feel this strongly about a piece which was meant for entertainment

[llybian]

I'm not really worried, I just think it's interesting that a lot of people can watch the same thing and come out with completely different views of the characters. It's just that I think sometimes people are too quick to scream OOC when someone just has a slightly different view from their's. That's not to say that we shouldn't challenge each other with our views of the character when we don't agree, but OOC is like a cardinal writer sin and it doesn't often lead to a good dialogue on character

[cmy_47]

So many people who've taken up the label of 'Writer' have disgraced that term in too many ways to count. An' those who'd turned out to have some skill, knack or talent of the craft often become enveloped by their own egos, refusin' to listen to any opinion that isn't their own

(Part Two of Comment)

[cmy_47]

Scary music playin'...y'know, in a story that would be hilarious. Our favourite Cone might start to get annoyed at the unexplained music that plays everytime he makes an appearance via the Astral Plane in front of someone

Re: (Part Two of Comment)

[llybian]

Oh, I don't know. I have my share of ego problems. My initial reaction to criticism is not always so graceful. My opinion is that writers have a... well, a right to defend their work if only to themselves. The right to stand tall and say "I don't care what you say" say "The ghost scene stays. It's the best I've ever written" :P

Re: (Part Two of Comment)

[harlock999]

The advantage/disadvantage of Xellos is that the anime itself changes his personality. His character is noticeably different in TRY than it is in Next. Any accusations of OOC-ness can therefore be answered by "I'm writing him as in (insert one) TRY/Next".

And Revolution/Evolution-R splits the difference. His general attitude is closer to TRY, but actions speak louder than words. On at least three different occasions he intervenes in a way that will preserve the Slayers gang when they're in trouble. And he seems remarkably happy when he kills Zumma -- could it be that he is secretly fond of Lina and her friends, and takes offense at attempts to harm them?