CV12Hornet Cleans Out His Fanfiction Favorites List (Beware of Shit Taste)
- Thread starter CV12Hornet
- Start date
Night
Widow Null
- Location
- Hoff
I don't think I got around to reading Fate/Zero Sense.
But that was mainly because I raid Fate/Stay Away, and Stay Away was fucking awful.
June 26 - 29, 2012
CV12Hornet
Riter.
- Location
- Tacoma, Washington
Impressions before reading:
"Somehow, I don't think that's how the Fidelius Charm works..."
Dumbledore's characterization is going to make or break this story. I just know it.
Review:
Fair warning: YMMV on this fic. I liked it, but it's also exactly the kind of fic that a lot of more well-read Harry Potter fans are not going to like. What this is is a fic that constructs a scenario and takes pains to have it make logical sense. However, that scenario amounts to taking a steaming dump on much of Magical Britain and holding up outside magical societies as better, while also edging dangerously close to bashing. As Night has pointed out, the author controls every last word they put to the page. All of the prior may be justified by events in the fic, but was it also necessary to do it in the first place?
Meh. That's for other people who might want to check this out. Me, I enjoyed it on its own merits, even if it did dip to bashing at points. Certainly, chapter 18, a full-power broadside aimed at the Weasleys, is to be skipped over. But I like tracing the series of unfortunate events, and I especially like how everything crashes down around Voldemort's ears. That, and I've always enjoyed reading about mistakes made due to limited information.
Verdict: I'm keeping it.
Well, with the original First Try removed...
- Location
- Omega
I CAN'T WAIT for Savage Skies review.You're growing lazy - you've already used the heavy flamer pic. For shame. To repent, you should skip to your FiMFiction favorites so we can get the real shit going.
Seirously, Wuxia ponies. Wuxia.
- Location
- Maryland
Oh my god people other than me know that exists
- Location
- Omega
It's epic as fuck
If it was a novel series I'd but it in a heartbeat
- Location
- Fawnland
You're growing lazy - you've already used the heavy flamer pic. For shame. To repent, you should skip to your FiMFiction favorites so we can get the real shit going
To be fair the flamer pic is really good. My favorite delete this picture by far.
- Location
- Hell
- Pronouns
- She/Her
It is fantastic, yes, i just needed an excuse. Reading and reviewing bad ponyfic is my favorite.
Cyreni
Smol Pone GM
-flashback to Lines and Webs and The Immortal Game and No I am Not A Brony…-
If CV12's tastes were in any way similar to mine circa five years ago, there will be plenty of that. Also plenty of opportunity to use fandom-relevant images.
The Dark Lords Asecndant
CV12Hornet
Riter.
- Location
- Tacoma, Washington
Impressions before reading:
The third and most current edition of the excellent Dark Lords of Nerima series. The secret is out, and the Senshi are faced with a new kind of enemy: one that's human, and connected, and engages them in the court of public opinion far more than in direct battle.
Review:
Holy balls, that was almost as intense as Chaos Theory. Though, the fact that I read the last two chapters with Guile's Theme on a loop probably helped.
Anyway, in case you couldn't guess, The Dark Lords Ascendant is just as good as the last two entries in the Dark Lords of Nerima series. It mixes the very serious tone of the second story with some of the zaniness of the first, which makes for an excellent mix. The action is great, the characters are developed well, and I really, really want to know what the hell happened in India in the backstory. Not just the tidbits we get, but the full story, because it sounds like a doozy.
But as fun as all that is, and getting to see the Senshi and Nerima crew work together (finally), what I think makes this story is the bad guy: Tanizaki Kazuo. He is, without a doubt, the best original villain I've seen in this project yet, and he outdoes most of the canon villains I've seen doing this, to boot. He has a distinct personality and clear motivations that put him in incontrovertible conflict with the Senshi and make him something of a dark mirror to Ranma. And he's smart. He'll make allowances for reasonable failures from his subordinates, when necessary; and when he doesn't, it's usually part of some attempt to control somebody. The many setbacks he suffers (mostly) don't faze him; he just moves on to his next contingency plan. Hell, the first time he suffers a major setback he pulls a Shishio Makoto and calls himself out for underestimating the heroes! At this point, his three major encounters with heroes have been mixed bags or outright failures of the type to send lesser villains into a breakdown. Beating Genma to death aside, he hasn't broken down, though you get the impression that as of the last chapter he's teetering on the edge.
Oh, and in case you're wondering, yes, he's a complete scumbag. Aside from his motivations for the whole evil plan - which amount to taking Sailor Moon's power because he has a compulsive need to win over anyone he thinks might be more powerful than him - his treatment of Unit Zero, a clone of Usagi intended to wrest control of the Silver Crystal from her, cements that.
I have, a few times, identified instances of abuse, and the specific language used, in my reviews. I don't think I've made it a secret that I loathe that sort of thing, and that loathing has only intensified now that I know people who have actually suffered it and consider them my friends. So, yeah, Tanizaki's method of controlling Unit Zero, which is cribbed straight from Domestic Abuse for Dummies? It pisses me right the fuck off, especially since it's a deliberate, calculated campaign of psychological control. Urgh.
Oh, and just to cement things: this is still ongoing. In fact, there's a good chance I'll actually get to see this finished! Woo!
Verdict: NEXT CHAPTER, NEXT CHAPTER, NEXT CHAPTER!
Dermonster
The Shittiest Wizard
Impressions before reading:
The third and most current edition of the excellent Dark Lords of Nerima series. The secret is out, and the Senshi are faced with a new kind of enemy: one that's human, and connected, and engages them in the court of public opinion far more than in direct battle.
Review:
Holy balls, that was almost as intense as Chaos Theory. Though, the fact that I read the last two chapters with Guile's Theme on a loop probably helped.
Anyway, in case you couldn't guess, The Dark Lords Ascendant is just as good as the last two entries in the Dark Lords of Nerima series. It mixes the very serious tone of the second story with some of the zaniness of the first, which makes for an excellent mix. The action is great, the characters are developed well, and I really, really want to know what the hell happened in India in the backstory. Not just the tidbits we get, but the full story, because it sounds like a doozy.
But as fun as all that is, and getting to see the Senshi and Nerima crew work together (finally), what I think makes this story is the bad guy: Tanizaki Kazuo. He is, without a doubt, the best original villain I've seen in this project yet, and he outdoes most of the canon villains I've seen doing this, to boot. He has a distinct personality and clear motivations that put him in incontrovertible conflict with the Senshi and make him something of a dark mirror to Ranma. And he's smart. He'll make allowances for reasonable failures from his subordinates, when necessary; and when he doesn't, it's usually part of some attempt to control somebody. The many setbacks he suffers (mostly) don't faze him; he just moves on to his next contingency plan. Hell, the first time he suffers a major setback he pulls a Shishio Makoto and calls himself out for underestimating the heroes! At this point, his three major encounters with heroes have been mixed bags or outright failures of the type to send lesser villains into a breakdown. Beating Genma to death aside, he hasn't broken down, though you get the impression that as of the last chapter he's teetering on the edge.
Oh, and in case you're wondering, yes, he's a complete scumbag. Aside from his motivations for the whole evil plan - which amount to taking Sailor Moon's power because he has a compulsive need to win over anyone he thinks might be more powerful than him - his treatment of Unit Zero, a clone of Usagi intended to wrest control of the Silver Crystal from her, cements that.
I have, a few times, identified instances of abuse, and the specific language used, in my reviews. I don't think I've made it a secret that I loathe that sort of thing, and that loathing has only intensified now that I know people who have actually suffered it and consider them my friends. So, yeah, Tanizaki's method of controlling Unit Zero, which is cribbed straight from Domestic Abuse for Dummies? It pisses me right the fuck off, especially since it's a deliberate, calculated campaign of psychological control. Urgh.
Oh, and just to cement things: this is still ongoing. In fact, there's a good chance I'll actually get to see this finished! Woo!
Verdict: NEXT CHAPTER, NEXT CHAPTER, NEXT CHAPTER!
I actually just read this series from start to finish last week due to it's appearance in a rec list for 'humerous misunderstanding' stories. It was one hell of a ride, and I don't even fully know much about Ranma or Sailor moon, beyond base osmosis.
I will admit, I got curious about many story elements of ascendant and tried to look them up because I didn't know it was original content. I got confused real quick.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Dark Lords Ascendant will forever hold a place in my heart as one of the most fandom-balanced crossovers I've ever experienced. The original DLoN was great, but it really felt like a ranma story set in sailor moon; the ranma side befriends the SM side's youma, beats up the SM side's enemies,and in the end "wins" by tricking them all. With DLA's cross-show character arcs, the more equalized combat skills, antagonists that would fit either show,and MANY side characters from both appearing and mattering in the plot, it feels like a near-perfect melding of the 2 shows.
July 26 - August 5, 2012
CV12Hornet
Riter.
- Location
- Tacoma, Washington
Impressions before reading:
Hmm, don't remember much of this one. Oh well! Journey of discovery!
Review:
Fun, if short. The character interactions are the best: Ao is curious, Udon is distrustful and murderous, and Sakura is an enigma to the hardened Mist ninja. Though an enigma that likes to yell at them, so they adapt.
At it's core, this is basically someone from one culture trying to understand someone from a different one, and I've always loved that sort of thing. Not much else to say, other than I like the author's vision of Mist.
Verdict: Keeper!
Impressions before reading:
Right, this is the one where Sakura is Peggy Sue'd as Sasuke's twin sister. I also don't remember anything else.
Review:
What do you get when you combined inconsistent tenses with an overly-flowery opening and SURPRISE IN-STORY AUTHOR'S NOTE?
You get a boot up the ass, off my List, that's what.
Verdict:
Anyway, with that out of the way, expect a new post either tomorrow or in a couple of weeks. The next sucker is big.
Ehh, I've seen it in fourth wall breaking stuff, where the author basically becomes a character. Dunno if that really counts, though.
- Location
- United Kingdom
- Pronouns
- She/Her
A Series of Unfortunate Events and the works of Sir Terry Pratchett
That's pretty much it, though
GNU Terry Pratchett
- Location
- Actually pretty lost
Did Terry Pratchett include Author's notes, or was it just a style of narration?
ltmauve
"Excuse me?"
- Location
- Earth
- Pronouns
- She/Her
They were footnotes, so they didn't interfere with the narration as much, since there was just a number in the text, and you could easily skip past the bottom of the page.
- Location
- Actually pretty lost
Oh, right. Those were sort of just more narration though - I don't recall them getting too meta.
Katamariguy
Pessimist. Contrarian. Naysayer.
- Location
- Upstate NY
Quite a pain to click on a Kindle, though.
And how could I get involved in a conversation about footnotes without mentioning House of Leaves?