Pairing Issues

[mark_asphodel]

It seems to me that all canon-warping pairings are not created equal.  For some bizarro reason, I find that pairing a characters with someone outside of their canonical "destiny" feels more transgressive when the pairing isn't crack.  Taking an indisputably "het" character and putting them in a yaoi or yuri pairing, or pairing two characters Because I Feel Like It (see: "By Any Other Name") is something I'm comfortable enough with.  Taking a "het" character and having them shack up with a totally plausible het choice with some canonical justification feels... dirty?  Feels like I should expect to get mauled for publishing it?  It's like it falls down some sort of fan-fictional Uncanny Valley and from there goes right to the Creepy Zone.

And no, I'm not carping about Catria/Marth again, though I have this problem with that particular pairing.  There's another FE3 hookup I'm working with that has, IMO, even more justification than C/M, and on some level I feel like fanboys and girls ought to beat me with sticks if I ever publish it.  Which is stupid, because every single day fan-writers publish stories featuring pairings that warp, shred, and blast canon.  That's part of what fanfiction is about, man.  I see the potential for this pairing in the text, I'm exploring it, and I shouldn't have to justify it to anyone.

Anyone else have this problem?  Anyone else find they're comfortable with something that is gleefully, unabashedly non-canon/crack, but not comfortable with something plausible enough to be almost-canon?

Comments

[hooves.livejournal.com]

I can't say that I've ever had that problem, myself. While I tend to shy away from most "non-canon" pairings (ie: pairings that can't happen in-game), I will say that Fire Emblem is an exception to The Rule. Most pairings can, on some level, make sense.

Maybe it feels weird to pair up two characters who are plausible (versus: Jut Because I Feel Like It) because it makes so much sense you're wondering if there's a reason it wasn't an in-game option. I really don't know, though. I think Guy/Florina makes sense, and I have no trouble at all writing it. (It's not EASY to write, but it doesn't make me feel weird writing it.) However, while a pairing like Hector/Serra makes sense to me also, on some levels, I would find it VERY DIFFICULT to write, maybe because, like Hector/FLORINA, it would take a lot of work on the parts of the characters for the pairing to actually work.

Now, something that I would have trouble writing would be a pairing where the personalities would mesh well-- except, oh wait, Character A doesn't even like Character B and can't get past that. That kind of stuff makes me uncomfortable, because not only do I find pairings created out of that unlikely to begin with, I also know they don't last. (aka: hooking up characters for teh hawt bothers me a lot and I can't write it.)

But I'll shut up after saying that you shouldn't worry about what other people think. If you write the pairing you're thinking of, and you put a lot of thought into it? Then by all means, go go go! (Nobody will maul you, I promise. UNLESS YOU ARE WRITING AN OC!RANDOMLAGUZSPECIES/IKE/SOREN/HECTOR because then you should be mauled. :B

[mark-asphodel.livejournal.com]

Maybe it feels weird to pair up two characters who are plausible because it makes so much sense you're wondering if there's a reason it wasn't an in-game option

Yeah, that's sort of the territory that bothers me... unless it's Rennac/L'Arachel, in which case damn the canon and full speed ahead.

UNLESS YOU ARE WRITING AN OC!RANDOMLAGUZSPECIES/IKE/SOREN/HECTOR because then you should be mauled

HAH. I just about died when you threw Hector into the mix.

[penandpaper71.livejournal.com]

Do you mind if I inquire as to which pairing? The ambiguity in your post has left me curious.

Anyway, more on topic, everyone has different tastes and, as far as I'm concerned, nothing should make feel bad about liking what you like. But I'm not sure that really helps you. -_-

Generally, crack pairings seem to be more easily accepted by people then possible non-canon pairings because no one expects a crack pairing to be "real" or terribly serious while pairings that could conceivably happen in canon are subject to more scrutiny because they could happen at some point.

Still, I don't think that should change anything. If you find potential in what you're working with then I think that you should run with it.

[mark-asphodel.livejournal.com]

Do you mind if I inquire as to which pairing? The ambiguity in your post has left me curious.

Uh... Malliesia's involved.

Generally, crack pairings seem to be more easily accepted by people then possible non-canon pairings because no one expects a crack pairing to be "real" or terribly serious while pairings that could conceivably happen in canon are subject to more scrutiny because they could happen at some point.

Well, that's just it. With the kind of stuff I'm toying with, I can't use the "just having fun" excuse because it's all very serious and some borders on darkfic. Since I'm writing it straight, and it's not meant to be taken as fun or exciting, it all feels very transgressive.

[shimizu-hitomi.livejournal.com]

I'm curious too. XD

I think it depends for me. unabashed crack is cool with me... with the caveat that it's in character, and crack is rarely if ever in character sadly enough. I think it's rare that people actually take crack pairings seriously (which is what I like to see). Usually I see crack pairings used as some sort of shock factor or for not-all-that-funny humor. FE3 gives a lot more freedom for this kind of pairing though, what with all the ambiguity.

Theoretically I'd be more comfortable with the plausible pairings, but I think what happens sometimes is that the "almost-but-not-quite" pairings need a lot of subtle fudging to make them work, which ends up making them feel off for no apparent reason. Like certain core aspects of the characters need to be differently interpreted, which skews the internal consistently just the slightest bit. For me there's a difference between "so plausible I have no idea why there's no option for it" (like I guess a L'Arachel/Rennac ending, or Saleh/Marisa supports for FE8), "plausible but I don't know, it feels off" (Guy/Florina as mentioned above -- I don't dislike it, but reading the pairing requires me to turn off something in my head), and "plausible but seriously wrecks my impression of their canonical relationship" (Hector/Serra, Cain/Palla).

I'm not sure what kind of discomfort you're running into though...

[shimizu-hitomi.livejournal.com]

internal consistency even. Gah.

[mark-asphodel.livejournal.com]

I'm curious too. XD

Malliesia's involved, which should give you an idea. That darned little girl... I just can't get her OR Yumina out of my head, and I'm not entirely sure how to write either one of them. They bug me, so I keep going back to them, and I keep scaring myself off. Yumina I might finally tackle for the next fe_contest entry, though.

FE3 gives a lot more freedom for this kind of pairing though, what with all the ambiguity.

Indeed. Damn it all.

I think what happens sometimes is that the "almost-but-not-quite" pairings need a lot of subtle fudging to make them work, which ends up making them feel off for no apparent reason. Like certain core aspects of the characters need to be differently interpreted...

That's a good point. That may sum up the problem pretty well. And I agree with your gradations of plausibility/comfort. Rennac/L'Arachel is one of those things I gleefully support, but Hector/Serra gets right into that territory of "Yeah, but...."

I'm not sure what kind of discomfort you're running into though...

Hard to explain... that's why I reached for the Uncanny Valley metaphor. "Almost-but-not-quite and the dissonance is creeping me out."

[gunlord.livejournal.com]

I once wrote a pairing between Renault and Lyn, but that was because someone aksed me too. u_u Perhaps you could get away with it if you provided a similar rationale :D

[mark-asphodel.livejournal.com]

You know, that's one of the examples I was contemplating to "justify" myself, because your story doesn't intend disrespect to the characters in the slightest.