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This one has been making the rounds, so why not?
これで以上です。
1. Three shipping tropes you love?
Enemies- or friends-to-lovers: I consider this to be a spectrum with two different starting points, rather than two different tropes. To my mind, a good shipping story is as much about what makes each character tick, and how each character discovers those things about themselves. This trope (particularly when you start at the far left of the spectrum) it tailor made to produce that exploration.
Pining: Pining is a wonderful trope because you get a lot of lovely emotional distress and the tension it inherently builds, and then a lovely bit of emotional release and payoff at the end. And all without having to go through it yourself.
Groveling: There is nothing like a good grovel, particularly when combined with the above two tropes. Write me a good grovel and I will eat out of your hand.
2. Three shipping tropes you don't love?
Soulmates/instalove: Like enemies- or friends-to-lovers, I see these as variations of the same thing and it's one I'm just not into. If the characters don't need to do any growing, exploration, or self-examination to get together (or if they're fated to get together anyway), what's the point?
Love triangle: Particularly (as so often happens) the kinder/gentler/calmer/more mature rival loses out to the angrier/more sullen/less emotionally available or mature rival because s/he loves the character they're competing for more, even if s/he just can't bear (or just can't) show it. Ugh. (I expect this trope is an attractive consolation story for people in cultural or personal situations with large imbalances between the amount of emotional labor and commitment expected from one partner over the other, but not being in such a situation, it doesn't have much to recommend itself to me.)
Now, if the object of the romantic competition within a love triangle unlocks the harem ending, the above no longer applies.
Forbidden romance: Namely, the specific shade of this trope in which the protagonist is dating or married to one character, but discovers that they're "meant to be with" that character's sibling, best friend, or what have you. Bonus hate points if they can never be with said sibling/best friend/whatever for "reasons". Even more bonus hate points if the partner is not any kind of asshole but just some plot element that had the misfortune of meeting the protagonist before protagonist's Real True Love (tm).
3. One emotional aspect of a ship that always gets you?
Give me characters who fall in love despite social, cultural, or religious expectations and mores telling them they can't. I want that tension. I want those dark nights of the soul as the characters deny, then question everything about society and themselves, and then I want the emotional payoff when they say Fuck it, throw their reputations to the winds, and get together.
4. One physical aspect of a ship that always gets you?
I'm not really into specific physical traits per se, but I do love it when characters are incredibly into their partner's individual attributes, whether that's build, coloring, calluses, signs of youth or aging...whatever that may happen to be in the context of a specific ship.
5. Multiship or monoship?
This really depends on the canon. There are some where I am 1 billion percent devoted to an OTP, 1 billion percent devoted to an OT3, and others where I delight in a lumberjack match of a shipping free-for-all.
6. Rare pairs or mainstream?
As most of my fandoms are rare at this point, you could make a convincing case that all my pairs are, of necessity, rare as well. But I've had fandoms where I shipped the most popular pairings, fandoms where I've shipped pairings that went against the grain of everyone else, and everything in between.
7. Polyamory or monogamy?
See the answer to 5), above.
8. If the ship is physical, reversible or not?
Generally, reversible. I also have a fondness for stories that explore characters who think they aren't (or shouldn't be) reversible exploring just that.
9. Do you always have romantic ships for fandoms?
Meaning, are there things I’m fannish about without caring to seek out romance or shipping fics for the source material? Absolutely. In fact, that’s probably the majority of my fandoms.
10. How important is the sexual part (if any) of your ship?
If I’m shipping something, I will most likely want some smut for it at some point, although I by no means need for there to be a sexual aspect to everything I consume for that ship.
11. Opinion on platonic ships?
Meaning, am I okay with ace romantic or romantic-but-not-sexual ships? My brothers and sisters in christ, allow me to introduce to you to the collected works of Sugiura Shiho.
12. Three ships you currently love?
13. Five OTPs from past fandoms?
Going backwards in time from my Ao3 account:
14. Opinion on the importance of marriage?
AFAIC, marriage is an excuse to throw a big food-and-dance(-and-booze-if-that’s-your-thing) party for your friends. If it makes narrative sense that the characters to consider it important, awesome. Otherwise, I’ve read too much Stephanie Coontz to be starry-eyed about the institution for its own sake.
15. Opinion on OC kids?
I’m not opposed on principle, but it would need to be well-written and make sense for the characters in question and even then I would never actively seek it out.
Enemies- or friends-to-lovers: I consider this to be a spectrum with two different starting points, rather than two different tropes. To my mind, a good shipping story is as much about what makes each character tick, and how each character discovers those things about themselves. This trope (particularly when you start at the far left of the spectrum) it tailor made to produce that exploration.
Pining: Pining is a wonderful trope because you get a lot of lovely emotional distress and the tension it inherently builds, and then a lovely bit of emotional release and payoff at the end. And all without having to go through it yourself.
Groveling: There is nothing like a good grovel, particularly when combined with the above two tropes. Write me a good grovel and I will eat out of your hand.
2. Three shipping tropes you don't love?
Soulmates/instalove: Like enemies- or friends-to-lovers, I see these as variations of the same thing and it's one I'm just not into. If the characters don't need to do any growing, exploration, or self-examination to get together (or if they're fated to get together anyway), what's the point?
Love triangle: Particularly (as so often happens) the kinder/gentler/calmer/more mature rival loses out to the angrier/more sullen/less emotionally available or mature rival because s/he loves the character they're competing for more, even if s/he just can't bear (or just can't) show it. Ugh. (I expect this trope is an attractive consolation story for people in cultural or personal situations with large imbalances between the amount of emotional labor and commitment expected from one partner over the other, but not being in such a situation, it doesn't have much to recommend itself to me.)
Now, if the object of the romantic competition within a love triangle unlocks the harem ending, the above no longer applies.
Forbidden romance: Namely, the specific shade of this trope in which the protagonist is dating or married to one character, but discovers that they're "meant to be with" that character's sibling, best friend, or what have you. Bonus hate points if they can never be with said sibling/best friend/whatever for "reasons". Even more bonus hate points if the partner is not any kind of asshole but just some plot element that had the misfortune of meeting the protagonist before protagonist's Real True Love (tm).
3. One emotional aspect of a ship that always gets you?
Give me characters who fall in love despite social, cultural, or religious expectations and mores telling them they can't. I want that tension. I want those dark nights of the soul as the characters deny, then question everything about society and themselves, and then I want the emotional payoff when they say Fuck it, throw their reputations to the winds, and get together.
4. One physical aspect of a ship that always gets you?
I'm not really into specific physical traits per se, but I do love it when characters are incredibly into their partner's individual attributes, whether that's build, coloring, calluses, signs of youth or aging...whatever that may happen to be in the context of a specific ship.
5. Multiship or monoship?
This really depends on the canon. There are some where I am 1 billion percent devoted to an OTP, 1 billion percent devoted to an OT3, and others where I delight in a lumberjack match of a shipping free-for-all.
6. Rare pairs or mainstream?
As most of my fandoms are rare at this point, you could make a convincing case that all my pairs are, of necessity, rare as well. But I've had fandoms where I shipped the most popular pairings, fandoms where I've shipped pairings that went against the grain of everyone else, and everything in between.
7. Polyamory or monogamy?
See the answer to 5), above.
8. If the ship is physical, reversible or not?
Generally, reversible. I also have a fondness for stories that explore characters who think they aren't (or shouldn't be) reversible exploring just that.
9. Do you always have romantic ships for fandoms?
Meaning, are there things I’m fannish about without caring to seek out romance or shipping fics for the source material? Absolutely. In fact, that’s probably the majority of my fandoms.
10. How important is the sexual part (if any) of your ship?
If I’m shipping something, I will most likely want some smut for it at some point, although I by no means need for there to be a sexual aspect to everything I consume for that ship.
11. Opinion on platonic ships?
Meaning, am I okay with ace romantic or romantic-but-not-sexual ships? My brothers and sisters in christ, allow me to introduce to you to the collected works of Sugiura Shiho.
12. Three ships you currently love?
- Cutter/Bliss and Octavia/Suki from House on Vesper Sands/The Naming of the Birds
- Astarion/Tav and Karlach/Tav from Baldur's Gate 3
- Yoruma/Sayatoki from 終点unknown
13. Five OTPs from past fandoms?
Going backwards in time from my Ao3 account:
- Luo Binghe/Shen Yuan | Shen Qingqiu from The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System
- Justice of Toren One Esk Nineteen | Breq/Seivarden Vendaai from Imperial Radch
- Aziraphale/Crowly from Good Omens
- Loki/Thor from MCU
- Thara Celehar/Azhanharad from The Tombs of Amalo
14. Opinion on the importance of marriage?
AFAIC, marriage is an excuse to throw a big food-and-dance(-and-booze-if-that’s-your-thing) party for your friends. If it makes narrative sense that the characters to consider it important, awesome. Otherwise, I’ve read too much Stephanie Coontz to be starry-eyed about the institution for its own sake.
15. Opinion on OC kids?
I’m not opposed on principle, but it would need to be well-written and make sense for the characters in question and even then I would never actively seek it out.
これで以上です。
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Namely, the specific shade of this trope in which the protagonist is dating or married to one character, but discovers that they're "meant to be with" their partner's brother, best friend, or what have you. Bonus hate points if they can never be with said brother/best friend/whatever for "reasons". Even more bonus hate points if the partner is not any kind of asshole but just some plot element that had the misfortune of meeting the protagonist before protagonist's Real True Love (tm).
I agree with this SO much. I think what I dislike about it is that the protagonist is never presented as a bad person, because of twu luv, even when they're doing an objectively bad thing. But not an interesting kind of bad thing! Just common, garden dickishness that we're expected to accept happily because of the aforementioned twu luv.
Give me characters who fall in love despite social, cultural, or religious expectations and mores telling them they can't. I want that tension. I want those dark nights of the soul as the characters deny, then question everything about society and themselves, and then I want the emotional payoff when they say Fuck it, throw their reputations to the winds, and get together.
I really love this, in contrast! <3
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Grr, yes. And in some cases (I'm looking at you, Outlander *cough cough*) the author treats, and expects audiences to consider, the original partner as bad person...simply because they were in a relationship with the protagonist first. How is that wrong!?
I'm glad you feel this way because sometimes I think my opinion on this puts me in an extreme minority.
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(There's other stuff that's gross: it's pretty rapey in places and the main villain turns out to be a Rapey Gay Man(TM), but in my defense I was about 12 when I first read this book and was just starting to encounter and form opinions on these sorts of things...)
how dare the original (usually female) partner date the protagonist first? How dare they be upset that the protagonist has gone and cheated on them with barely a thought? Oh no, how wicked!
It's such a common trope, and it's wild to me how widespread this sentiment seems to be. As a reader, can't you put yourself in that character's place? How wicked would you feel if that were you??)
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And very much with you on soulmates/instalove (which, yeah, feels like the same trope just without the Fated formulation), and also situations where a perfectly reasonable character gets shafted because of love triangles or forbidden love.
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Oh, for sure, and whether I like that trope for any particular ship really depends on the ship, and how well the author carries it off. Otherwise, I'm perfectly happy to read gen stuff (but if there's going to be a ship and a trope, that is one of my faves).
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Thanks for sharing.
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And yes! There's a world of difference between "I'm stuck with you but I don't like your carefree/hard-driving style" versus "Your traitorous actions destroyed my kingdom and I've sworn vengeance against your entire country". And it does need all that work along the way to "love", otherwise it's just another shade of instalove. In a romance starting at "enemies" the work is the whole point.
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