on fanworks

[xparrot]

Addendum to my Homestuck pimping: Go watch this to give you a taste; it's basically a preview, a remix of some of the original music matched to some nicely remixed animation. Will only take you a minute and it's totally worth it.

Homestuck has a crazily huge and active fandom for a webcomic cartoon production thing. In addition to remixes and original animation (obligatory Carameldansen!), there's some standard music vids, with varying amounts of creative vid editing to accommodate the media. So we get Weird Al's That's Your Horoscope for Today - starring the trolls, naturally. ...and then there's Lament, a Karkat vid to Mumford & Son's "Little Lion Man", and yeah out of context I'm sure it looks ridiculous with the oft-goofy art and all...but, erm, it's actually kind of perfect? No really. ^^;

And then there's the fic (broken 1,000 on AO3 and counting!) Which I've mostly just poked at from afar (and am not feeling particularly inspired by it myself - partly it's the media; partly it's teetering on type-A fandom for me anyway, so...) but have already found some first class writing. Though I get a bit weirded out by the chat logs - it's the same reason I have trouble reading fic for novels; there's something about reading fic that's the same format/media as the original canon that confuses me. Almost like enjoying the fic is betraying the original novel, because why would I read one when I can read the other? I don't know, ask my crazy fannish brain. (While you're at it you can inquire as to why doujinshi for manga doesn't do this to me. Maybe it's because most doujin-ka don't try to imitate mangaka's styles, and those that do, even the best, I still can tell? While as prose can be less definite? I dunno.)

Homestuck is a particularly odd case because regular prose fics don't throw me, but chat-logs do (though I'm also finding that they illuminate just how, er, unique the writing of Homestuck is, because while imitating the colors and typing quirks is relatively easy, getting the dialogue to sound right is tricky - haven't found anyone who can pull off a convincing Dave, for instance.) That being said, SeptimusMagistos's "We're All Doomed" has a lot of spot-on moments of characterization, most of them hysterical. And urbanAnchorite rocks the prose with both comedy and completely OTT delicious aaaaaangst.

(Bonus mention of this for featuring my One True Blackrom for Karkat - totally canon, yo! Just ask Nepeta's shipping wall...)(...Really, I haven't figured out if I have any actual ships. Mostly I just want Karkat to get lots of hugs and am happy seeing him with anyone who might provide such, platonic or otherwise. :P)

Comments

[immicolia.livejournal.com]

I'm about the same on the fic-reading front (and I don't feel much of an urge to write it either) it just is what it is and is mostly just fine without extra fic. The few pieces I've poked at reading have mostly been about the Guardians for whatever reason, mostly I think because of a vague sort of fondness for Bro and because the less we see of a character in canon the more I like fic about them. I'm weird and have a minor character fetish and always will. XD (although, oh god, yes that is so very much my One True Blackrom for Karkat too and that fic you recced is just..... fffff ♥ although ♥ may not be entirely appropriate. Whatever. XD)

Either way. Due to my fondness for incredibly weird things, I would be remiss if I didn't point at the crazy Bro/Redglare fic and make ridiculously amused and delighted noises. Because I honestly think it is the greatest fic I have seen in this fandom. Obviously because I am different and strange and have actually only read about five fics so far. XD

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

Haha, yeah, I've got specific fic kinks myself - I tend to go for stuff about my favorite chars, which often works because I have boring tastes and latch onto the same char everybody else loves; but then half the time I'll want gen to the exclusion of any pairing and that's often next to impossible to find. And otherwise it'll be OTPs - being ship-open for me rarely lasts long, but I try to avoid OTPing as long as possible so I can keep reading other stuff :P

That being said, Bro/Redglare is kind of perfect - cross-time genetic paradox shenanigans FTW! XDXDXDXD

[shayera.livejournal.com]

...and now I find myself wasting hours watching weird Homestuck vids on YouTube. This happens when I have run out of canon, I guess. And then I pester Past You about it, because it's not like I have anyone else to pester?

I wonder if I should poke at fic. It's not the kind of fandom I'd normally be interested in fic for (partly because it's good enough as is, but secondly because any fic is likely to be completely and utterly jossed and/or wrong, and also thirdly because it's an amateur work to begin with, and fanfic for non-published stuff feels... weird. Not sure why. o_o). But I'm out of canon? HMMMM

I can imagine Dave being hard to write... I'm not sure he knows himself what he's really thinking behind all that coolkid irony, heh.

Karkat/Karkat is obviously the OTB for him. No one else could hate him as he does, poor thing. (And yes, like you said somewhere else, John should totally be his moirall, because he needs one, and John handles him so well. ♥)

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

Ahahahah - so did you find anything good on Youtube?? Must share if so! (I also can recommend listening to the music while doing other stuff. Or just putting Descend on loop 5 times in a row. Not that I've done that or nothin'... ^^;)

I totally agree that fic is weird for all the reasons you name...otoh, HS has the most fic/fandom production of any amateur internet work I have ever seen (and technically it's not exactly amateur - I think AH is making his living off it right now?)

Anyway. The fic is weird, yeah, but it's better than I was expecting. A lot better. And there's some gen! Also helps if you think of it as AU/alt timeline (which a lot of it is) which is...semi- to completely canonical, really? ^^;

...Also for me right now fanworks are the last bastion between me going and rereading the WHOLE COMIC all over again ^^;;; (...but it will make so much more sense the 2nd time through!)

- anyway, if you're curious, try, say, this story is set in an AU-ish future (I hope it's AU, anyway, it's not the way I'd want the game to end, with no trolls!) but it has *such* cute friendship between the kids (and a pretty good Dave voice...)

Poor Karkat, he really can't hate anyone except himself; he tries hard, but it's always just splashover hate...he is such a bad troll! (And Jade can be his auspistice, per Nepeta's shipping wall!) ...I am in debate about John; on the one hand Karkat needs a moirail; on the other he also can really use regular friends, and John is a very good buddy to have...(I've also found myself reading Karkat/John, but to no one's surprise the slash doesn't satisfy me nearly as much as a good solid friendship ^^)

[shayera.livejournal.com]

Didn't find much that I cared enough about to watch more than once. I found Never Split the Party to be very amusing though!

...hm, yeah, offshoot timelines is a good way to look at fic - paradox space sure is complicated. :D

I'm this close to start reading the series all over from the beginning. Please tell me to stop. ^^;;

For being such a hateful little bastard, Karkat isn't very good at hating people, is he? Except for himself. I mean, he was *spade-eyed* (XDDD) at first sight with John, but he kind of blew that one pretty bad.

I really can't see Hearts between John and Karkat, but I could see Diamonds. I mean, if anyone is able to ground Karkat, John is a good candidate. But he's human, and he's basically offering human friendship, which is also squeeful. :D Karkat really needs to have someone sane around, and John might be... the closest this series has to offer?

Also, hugs. There needs to be a group hug with Karkat in the middle, I think. Did anyone draw that?

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

Hee - the Never Split the Party vid was great mainly for imagining Karkat GMing a game with the other trolls. Screaming matches and munchkinning oh my!

I'm this close to start reading the series all over from the beginning. Please tell me to stop. ^^;;

Only as long as you tell me the same! It is...surprisingly hard to resist, considering how long it takes to read...(but just think of how much more sense everything will make! And I've already found myself going back and rereading bits...all over the place, really...)

For being such a hateful little bastard, Karkat isn't very good at hating people, is he? Except for himself.

...ironically I think one of the things Karkat hates himself for is that he's so bad at hating ^^; But yeah...he's got so much RAAAAAGE but he has a hard time actually genuinely disliking people (unless they kill his friends, and even then...!), and he pretty much always apologizes whenever he might have really hurt someone's feelings. And the funny thing is it's returned; he actually makes a pretty good leader because he's about the only troll who isn't involved in some interpersonal conflict; they all are fond of him. And now the kids are getting that way, too...to know Karkat is to love him, entirely in spite of himself!

Also, hugs. There needs to be a group hug with Karkat in the middle, I think. Did anyone draw that?

Not that I've seen but I keep looking! (Karkat getting hugs is definitely its own subgenre in fic, but not as much in a gen context as I'd like :P)

[shayera.livejournal.com]

Hee - the Never Split the Party vid was great mainly for imagining Karkat GMing a game with the other trolls.

I know! And he actually is trying to guide a motley crew of adventurers. XD (Also, I found the parts about not taking your eyes off the Thief oddly hilarious, too.)

Only as long as you tell me the same!

*resist resist* I don't know how long my resistance will hold. ^^;; It's loong and I need to do other things, but there will be no updates in a week! :(

Yeah, Karkat has all the rage and none of the hate, because he actually likes people. And he hates the fact that he does, because that's not how trolls are supposed to be. So it's all in spite of himself. And people like him, also in spite of himself. So really, his only possible Blackrom is with himself! XD

Vriska said that Karkat's leadership kept the trolls fighting together instead of against each other, so he must have done a hell of a good job. Which of course wasn't a good thing, because as trolls they weren't supposed to stand united. According to Vriska. But then again, I'm not sure I trust Vriska's judgment all that much, considering the bad stuff that were supposed to happen was all her fault.

(Karkat getting hugs is definitely its own subgenre in fic, but not as much in a gen context as I'd like :P)

Yeah... But gen hugs are the best! ♥

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

gen hugs for the win!
(aka why John needs to get to the trolls ^^)

Yes, Karkat is a very bad troll, which makes him a pretty decent human being. (and him being able to unite the trolls in spite of themselves - shades of his mysterious Ancestor "the Sufferer" mayhaps?)

...The other thing about Karkat is that he's probably especially crabby now, because not only did they lose the game and their new universe and everything, but also he hasn't slept in over 600 hours (save one nightmarish nap), which even for a troll can't be healthy...when this is all over someone needs to put the poor boy to bed!

[shayera.livejournal.com]

Aww, that fic!! ♥♥♥

Karkat would make a decent human being (red blood and all! Like he's a missing link or something), but he grew up in a world where being decent was not a good thing, and he's all scarred up from it. Poor thing.

We got that one mysterious hint about Karkat's Ancestor, and yeah - he must have done something amazing to be censored out of history like that. I wonder if Karkat knows? Seems luck is a factor in finding out about your Ancestor. And it doesn't seem he was allowed to leave much of a legacy?

I'm actually happy that the one who left one hell of a legacy was Tavros's Ancestor. Because Tavros is/was a decent person too, but an even bigger failure as a troll than Karkat, since he failed to get even a prickly shell to protect himself. :(

And yeah, it would not surprise me if Karkat did some total collapsing sooner or later... o.o

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

There was a theory I read somewhere (Homestuck pages on TVTropes? it's definitely not my idea, anyway) which might actually be what the series is going for (might even explain what Karkat meant about messing up the frog breeding?), that Karkat was the troll in particular responsible for the human universe (I hesitate to call it "our" universe, because it doesn't really appear to be our Earth, but...! ^^;) - that it is basically his ideal universe, and that's why he was the one to be opening the door and such. So he is literally the human universe god, as he claims to be. And it does explain why humans have red blood like his, and maybe why the humans are so much more friendship-oriented (and why the human universe has the same movie pop culture while having almost nothing else in common, because that was Karkat's main interest??) - like so many things in HS, it starts making more crazy sense the more you think about it...!

(the same thread was also hypothesizing that Karkat's ancestor might've been Troll Jesus (jegus!)...so...!)

Awww, poor Tavros, yeah, he's awfully tragic - and it is cool that his Ancestor got to have such an impact!

[shayera.livejournal.com]

Troll Jegus! o_O How can such a preposterous idea make so much sense!? >_<

And yeah, Karkat messing up the frog breeding and getting a universe that is the kind of universe he would want... O___O

Heh, I kind of want to see Tavros' Ancestor taking out Vrista's. If only for a bit of cosmic justice, in a really weird way.