FE Contest Voting/Free Knight Love

[mark_asphodel]

 Day-um, fe_contest .

I mean, there was a bunch of good stuff this time.  There was good stuff last time, too, but it just keeps getting better.  This is really cool.  As samuraiter  said over on his journal, the community-support aspect of this is really great.  I wouldn't have finished my story for months if myaru  hadn't egged me on, some of us turned up the pressure on myaru  to get hers out, and shimizu_hitomi joined the fray after seeing what the rest of us were doing.

Oh, yeah-- FOUR Archanea-verse entries.  Sa-weet!

Anyway, now that Michalis has been laid to rest (for now), it's back to the WIP-pile.  "Another Piece of Blue" is inching closer to completion, and I've finished a little thing called "A Dark Adapted-Eye" that chronicles one of the misadventures of the Free Knights.  [That's the post-war team of George, Astram, Midia, Gordin, and Castor, who are doing the Super Friends thing in the city of Pales].  Dunno when I'll post it, though.  For one, it covers some of the same ground as Chapter Five of "Another Piece of Blue" wrt street gossip, rumors, political dissidents, and other NICE topics.  Is it more fun to see this stuff from Cain's lofty perspective in the corridors of power, or Castor's cynical perspective from the gutter?  I can't really say.  They certainly have 180-degree reactions to what they see/hear, plus Castor has the rest of his gang to serve as a foil, whereas Cain keeps going off to angst alone as the shoes drop around him.       

Anyway, the Free Knights are a fun bunch.  I've said this before, but they are so totally the stereotypical superhero team.  George is the smart and cool one, Astram is the guy who looks like a leader but is less clever than his buddies, Gordin is the upright and honest one, Castor is the sneaky and underhanded one, and Midia is The Chick.  Throw in a little romantic tension with Astram/Midia and Gordin->George and you're in business.  Why the hell do fans find characters like Navarre so irresistible, again?  Brooding loners are BORING.  They brood!  They're alone!  What's the point?

[If you're gonna write Navarre, at least give him Fina to interact with.]

OK.  I need to finish making dinner.

Comments

[myaru.livejournal.com]

Hmmm. Having written mainly from the corridors of power in other canons, so to speak... well, I prefer lofty settings, but it sounds like fic about the Free Knights would be fun. Maybe less political, but more flavorful, if that makes any sense? I personally left Shadow Dragon without much of a feel for the world - Pales would be great to see "in person" from a POV other than Nyna or Marth.

I've really neglected reading for this canon. Lately FE fic hasn't appealed to me, but I really do want to go read... pretty much everything you've written.

Why the hell do fans find characters like Navarre so irresistible, again? Brooding loners are BORING. They brood! They're alone! What's the point?

He doesn't do much, does he? Five or ten years ago I would've liked him just for his pretty face. Now... Camus is hotter, and Michalis is hotter than that. :P No room here for Navarre!

Honestly, though, I don't know what's so interesting about him. Joshua didn't appeal to me much either, and he's basically the same stereotype. Same for Rutger, Karel, the Tellius swordmasters... there's nothing to them.

I guess Tellius has the up side of switching gender on us.

(Actually, I take it back about Rutger - he had a good reason to angst, but it still doesn't make him super-fascinating.)

[mark-asphodel.livejournal.com]

Maybe less political, but more flavorful, if that makes any sense?

Yeah, it does. And I think it's true.

Lately FE fic hasn't appealed to me, but I really do want to go read... pretty much everything you've written.

XD

He doesn't do much, does he? Five or ten years ago I would've liked him just for his pretty face. Now... Camus is hotter, and Michalis is hotter than that.

He's smokin' hot in FE11. Ooh la la. I understand the visceral appeal for sure. But all these kiddies writing 'fic giving him a prominent role... guys, there's not enough there, especially not if all you're working with is FE11. Which is why some of these 'fics BLATANTLY borrow material from Karel!

[And I suspect Marth would rather hang out with just about anybody in the army (except for Athena) over spending free time with Navarre. Why fans feel the need to make Navarre some kind of mentoring figure... no sense making.]

I guess Tellius has the up side of switching gender on us.

Well, FE8 has Marisa. Who is missing a few marbles.

Actually, I take it back about Rutger - he had a good reason to angst, but it still doesn't make him super-fascinating

Most FE characters have a reason to angst, though.

[myaru.livejournal.com]

some of these 'fics BLATANTLY borrow material from Karel

Not the most inspiring of figures, from my POV, but whatever floats their boats, I guess. He and Navarre seem to have very little in common, but I'll be the first to admit I ignored Karel and don't see much to him either.

And I suspect Marth would rather hang out with just about anybody in the army

Like, Cain, Abel, Jeigan, Caeda (:P), or hey, pretty much anybody he knows beyond a "hi, I joined your army" conversation?

... nah. Marth and Navarre are best buddies, obviously.

FE8 has Marisa. Who is missing a few marbles

They continued that trend with Mia in FE9, although Marisa's brand of sanity is... interesting. She's the happy medium between the brooding loners of the old school games and the batshit happy variety you get later.

No, maybe "cocky" is a better term for the Tellius swordmasters. I think "batshit" kind of fits, though.

Most FE characters have a reason to angst, though.

Considering how many heroes have lost family, villages, and so on to big bad villains, it's surprising there's anybody left to start a war.