Ten Things I Will Not Apologize For in SG-1 Fandom

[moonshayde]

Since the show is coming to a close very soon, I thought I'd look back at the fandom a bit. These are some of my feelings on the SG-1 fandom. It's not everything I think and feel, but they are important points. My involvement as definitely lessened over time and will likely continue to lessen due to my original fic commitments. Yet, at the same time I know I won't be leaving completely. Not right now, anyway.



1. I am a GEN and TEAM fan.
Occasionally, I see this stigma against Gen team fans. I'm proud to be one. I like the team dynamic best. I feel it allows all the characters to showcase their strengths and weaknesses. It also best demonstrates how much they care for each other. Just because I don't ship or see Sam/Jack or Daniel/Vala at the same level as others doesn't make me any less of a fan or make me some delusional freak.

2. I am a Daniel fan.
I love Daniel. I always will. He's the character that drew me to the show (though in a TEAM context) and he'll always be the one I feel a certain affinity to. Part of that is because I find the character intriguing. Part of it is because Daniel studies what I study. Part of it is because I think MS playing Daniel is cute. But for the character? He's not perfect. He's arrogant and flawed and kind of dangerous when he sets his mind on something. But I love him for it. The show is just not the same without Daniel.

3. I am a Sam fan.
I love Sam. She's also flawed, but in different ways. She's bright and she's brave, but is an emotional mess. I may not have liked what they've done with her character sometimes, but I feel like in the past two seasons she's matured as a character. I've always enjoyed her overall, and as a character she seems to often get the short end of the stick as "the girl." But I can't not have Sam on SG-1. She makes it as much as Jack and Daniel and Teal'c make it for me. And now, Cameron. I am also proud that I, personally, can enjoy both Sam and Daniel without having to feel like taking sides :)

4. I love Cameron.
One can still love Cameron and love Jack. For me, Cameron is not Jack. Cameron does not replace Jack. Because really, who can replace Jack? Cameron is new and fresh, and adds something vibrant to an aging show and to the other characters who have faced so much over the years. And though he's not always written consistently, Cameron is my favorite part of the new aspect of the show. It doesn't hurt that he's hot, either.

5. I multiship in the fandom and don't have an OTP.
I am GEN for the show, but anything goes in fandom. The closest to an OTP I may have is Jack/Sara and Daniel/Sha're. And I like the tragic ends to those ships. I just do. But I find fandom fun and full of so many possibilities. Why not explore them? I explore some ships more than others. Some ships I'm just not feeling the love. But what is nice about fandom is that if I get an idea, I can go with it, no matter what it is.

6. I have friends of every persuasion.
I'm ecstatic that I know people that love various pairings. Knowing people that like a pairing I don't like, or don't like a pairing that I like, has been an eye opener. One can learn a ton about characterization and different povs on characters. Sometimes, if you love a character so much, you can miss their faults and turn into flat out worship. Other fans can help here. Also, if you dislike a character and someone else loves them, they might be able to point out some things you missed. It's great :)

7. I don't write porn.
I have many friends who write porn. That's fine. I don't have anything against people reading and enjoying it, actually. It's not for me. I wouldn't do it justice anyway. And I'm okay with that :)

8. I am a fanfic snob.
Yes, I am. I will stand by anyone's right to write whatever they want, but at the same time there is a lot of what I deem to be crap out there. In fact, I am rarely impressed. If I have ever read a fic of yours or commented on a fic or have recced you, then you know you have done something right. I'm sure that there are a few of you I've forgotten to feedback in the past or there are people I haven't read yet. So, don't feel discouraged if you've never heard from me. But I am hard to please and I won't apologize for that.

9. I think adding Vala to the show was a bad idea.
I love Claudia Black. I don't mind the concept of Vala. And I think CB does the absolute best with the role she has. However, I feel that (especially in S9) she hurt the dynamic on the show. In part, I feel that was due to AT's absence, RDA leaving, and a bunch of new cast and concepts that threw me off -- we lost half of SG-1 at the beginning of S9. For the record, I am enjoying her MUCH more in S10. I don't hate her and I don't love her. That seems to get me in trouble all the way around, but too bad ;)

10. To this day, I still love Jack.
I will always love Jack. Always. He was part of what made this show work and he's sorely missed. Despite some of RDA's less than stellar performances in the later years of the show, I still feel like Jack added something that cannot be replaced. They all add something that is unique and special. And maybe this is why I love this show and the better parts of fandom so much. Like every character, every person brings something unique to the table. And together, they all create this wonderful buffet of specialness :)

PS - The Teal'c love is a given ;)

SG-1 has been great. I still love it and I always will. And yay for the net so it can continue to live on :)

Comments

[holdouttrout.livejournal.com]

I like this list. Very much. I wish, sometimes, that I were a gen girl. I think gen people have good heads on their shoulders and have a different perspective on character interactions. It's nice to see people that don't automatically assume that the characters much be In Love, OMG.

This doesn't stop me from shipping though.

Sigh.

:-)

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I'm very happy being gen. I feel that most of the time, I don't get disappointed that way :) And if an idea strikes me, I can always write ship in the fandom if I want.

(Though, I usually ship on other shows. Just not SG-1.)

But hey if shipping makes you happy, all the power to you :)

[parisntripfan.livejournal.com]

Good for you for posting exactly what you think and not caving to the peer pressure within the SG-1 fandom. I may not always agree with you, but I have always gotten the impression we could have a rational discussion - which is something I feel is lacking in many places (not just fandom).

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

I am what I am ;) I feel that as long as you don't try to force me to obey your rule, than I won't do it to you :)

[http://users.livejournal.com/traycer_/]

I cannot agree with you more on #7. I'm afraid if I wrote porn, I'd be laughed out of the fandom. :) I can get down and dirty, but not THAT dirty.

As for the snob business, I've found myself doing that with a few authors that have several books out on the bookstore shelves!! I used to like them, but now i sometimes have to wonder just how they got those books published in the first place.

And Jack. Can I just say, "Me too!" to everything you wrote. :D And that goes especially for the "less than stellar performance" during the later years. I guess I just prefer Action Jack over the Sit Behind the Desk Jack.

One last thing. Can you tell me what OTP stands for? I thought I had figured it out, but now I'm thinking that I am wrong once again.

Great analysis of characterization and the show in general. Thanks for this!

[gategrrl.livejournal.com]

OTP = One True Pairing

You know. Like Teal'c and Daniel. ;-)

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

heh heh

[http://users.livejournal.com/traycer_/]

Teal'c and Daniel... hmmm Oh yeah, now I get it!! ... ... Then again, maybe I don't. *grins* Teal'c and Daniel? As in... well, Teal'c and Daniel??! lol

Thank you for this. Now I can stop pretending I know what this one means and work on figuring out what all the other ones mean. :)

[sela21k.livejournal.com]

Oh yeah, now I get it!! ... ... Then again, maybe I don't

LOLOLOL!

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

Like GG said. It means One True Pairing. it often has a negative connotation outside of shipper camps, but a positive one within shipper camps. That is not an absolute, though.

I like Sit Behind the Desk Jack and Action Jack. I just don't think RDA's heart was really in it anymore. The show has been on for so long, so I understand. But in the end, I still love Jack :)

[http://users.livejournal.com/traycer_/]

Well, I can certainly see where the positive comes into play in the shipper camps. To them, whatever camp they may be in, there is only one true pairing. But then again, there are so many shipper camps out there, I would imagine that there's a lot of negativity slipping in through the cracks.

I think that I'll just hang out in my own little world where I can ship everybody and their brother, and let the others fight it out. Multi shipping is much more fun anyway.

[aurora-novarum.livejournal.com]

Yeah, um, what you said. Ditto. :-)

(Except I don't think I'll write ship. Never say never, but...I read it, just likely not write it (maybe Daniel/Sha're...but...). And #7, definitely agree. If I did it, it would suck, and I don't mean that in the good "porny" way)

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

The world could use more Daniel/Sha're...

[paian]

I love your list. Doing it was a neat idea and it came out wonderfully. I especially love #6. And your last line most of all. :-)

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

I figured that hit the basic points. Sometimes I get a little fiesty and could have gone off on more, but I'm feeling pretty good tonight. But it was fun. I love SG-1 and my healthy flist :)

[paian]

A healthy flist is a wonderful thing, truly. I have such a strong preference for one particular pairing that sometimes I get a sense that friends feel betrayed when I write or point to things outside of it, but it's never been more than a moment's confusion and quickly resolved with no ill feelings, for which I'm very grateful.

[beanpot.livejournal.com]

One big yep all around. I multi-ship like mad in fandom, but when it comes to the show, I tend to shy away from any pairing that is even hinted at. Atlantis has kind of hinted at Telya/John recently and it just makes me run the other way. Mainly because any time characters are paired up and must be in twue lub..the show goes downhill.

And its funny my evolution into a sort of snob on fanfic. When I started out, I read a lot - a lot - of bad stuff. Mainly because I didn't really know where the great stuff was. Now I tend to stick to people I know and people they rec. If I venture out on my own, the path is littered with hefflumps and wuzzules.

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

I think your evolution as a snob is the basic route, or so I've learned. When I started out, I devoured everything - except for Sam/Jack. Good, bad, ugly: I couldn't tell the difference. I read a ton of H/C. I read fic where they were all wildly out of character but I didn't care because OMG fic!

As I became more in tune to the show and I started to see patterns in fanfic, I started to become a snob. I talked to various fans who sipped different pairings and they opened my eyes to character traits and quriks I'd become blind to. So most fic became a major turn off.

Now, basically, i read my flist when i can. I'm notoriously behind because of RL, but I trust my flist for quality. I hit the same authors over and over. I feel bad for the new people trying to break in because it's tough. I know it's tough. I wish there was a better way.

And yay for multiship in the fandom and gen on the show. Woohoo! It's funny because when I watched SGA, I was so against John/Teyla at the beginning. I thought John/Elizabeth had more spark. Then, when the writers focused on that pairing, I found the John/Teyla stuff to be sweeter. If what you say is true and they are back to John/Teyla again, I bet I would sour to them all over. I just don't like how must pairings are written on tv these days, especially on SG-1 or SGA.

[sela21k.livejournal.com]

Jack luv...I so totally agree.

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

I so need to work on some Jack fic soon. I just do. I miss him so.

[abyssinia4077.livejournal.com]

I am also proud that I, personally, can enjoy both Sam and Daniel without having to feel like taking sides :)

I'm so sitting here boggling at the idea of not loving BOTH Sam and Daniel.
Yay team!

I'm curious - with your explanation of being a fic snob - are there any general trends of things that will turn you on or off a fic - things you like or don't? How do you decide what to read, especially for new authors?

A-men on the not writing porn. I wrote a fic a while ago that had my first ever sex scene - and it was very understated and short - not porny at all and I still really flailed writing it. Definitely not something I'm really cut out to write.

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

I'm curious - with your explanation of being a fic snob - are there any general trends of things that will turn you on or off a fic - things you like or don't? How do you decide what to read, especially for new authors?

That's a tough question. When I first entered fandom, I read everything I could get my hands on, save Sam/Jack because I was extremely anti that pairing at the time. I couldn't even tell that some of it was bad fic. i just devoured it.

As I spoke to more and more different kinds of fans out of my little fandom bubble, I wised up to the fact I was just falling into fanon and fandom tropes. It was a hard lesson to learn, but it made my writing much much better. The negative aspect was that it shrunk my reading list ;)

I shy away from fics that have too much dumb!Jack in them or have Daniel on a pedestal. I don't like slash (or gen) that strips the guys of their masculinity. And I tend to not read too much het with sex scenes only because most of the time I feel the story can move forward better without them. (There are always exceptions to the rule.) I get angry if gen is actually slash or ship in disguise. I will not touch death fic and I'm not big on rapefic, though sone non-con I can handle in small doses if it's done with finese. That means, attempted non-con that doesn't go anywhere. Don't you dare feed me sap and schmoop. And always, character bashing is a good way to get black listed in my book.

How does a new writer score points with me? Write me characters that act and sound like what I see on TV. I will really love you if you write me those characters in a plot. And if your plot is good, you score bonus points. If you cannot write a long plotty fic (and frankly I don't have much time to read logn fics right now), I can take humor just as easily as long as it's not over the top. Crack!fic is a rare treat that I can only have once in a while.

Unfortunately, most writers I've encountered don't fall into this little niche that I love. I'm lucky that my flist is pretty darn good. But for new writers, it's tough. I know it's tough. I'm not one to click blindly on links much anymore and go on recommendations. I wish there was a better way for new writers to break in.

Or, people can always do what aurora_novarum did. One day, she contacted me about putting a Teal'c-centric fic in my tealc_fic comm. Since she was not on LJ and I didn't know who she was even though she'd written some fics before contacting me, I agreed to read it through for her. I emailed her back telling her it more than fit into the comm and I proudly told her it had some of the best characterization I had seen in a while. And well, the rest is history :)

[martyfan.livejournal.com]

Agreed on almost every point (I'm a little more uncertain on the Vala thing, as I do like Daniel/Vala but I think the show would've been fine if she'd never ended up on the show either). As far as #7 goes, the closest thing to porn I've ever written is a very non-erotic Jolinar/Bynarr flashback, so word on that too.

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

Well, what I like about most of my flist is that we don't have to agree 100% but we don't start a crusade to destroy those that don't ;) It makes the fandom more fun that way.

Yikes, it took me a sec to figure out who Bynarr was. Bad fan.

[martyfan.livejournal.com]

Yeah, writing that scene was really disturbing. I didn't go into detail or anything, but I needed to get into Jolinar's head for a little while and that's one of the only times we saw her in canon. Bynarr was a really sick character and I never want to write that kind of scene again.

[crayonbreakygal.livejournal.com]

I really, really love your list. I may not agree with all of them 100 percent, but I still love them. You give reasons for every single one of the things that you will not apologize for. There's just so many people out there that say "if you don't like x/y, then you're horrible" or something like that.

Yay for the multiship/gen fans out there who like just what they like.

And you turned me to Daniel/Elizabeth so there is good in the world. hehehehe

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

There's just so many people out there that say "if you don't like x/y, then you're horrible" or something like that.

I think that is what annoys me most about fandom. Why can't we be adult enough to stand by our own opinions without making everyone else miserable? But hey, it happens everywhere - politics, business, our day to day lives. I guess it's inevitable it will show up in fandom.

And oooh, Daniel/Elizabeth. We seriously need more fic for them already.

[sg-fignewton.livejournal.com]

Never, EVER apologize for being a fan of team and gen! I will stand right there in your corner and cheer you on, waving my Teamy Goodness banner with abandon! :)

One of the things I most enjoy about your fic is its sheer scope. You write all characters with equal love and attention. I salute you, and strongly encourage lots and lots of new fics in the very near future!

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I wouldn't say I equally love all the characters, but I do try to handle them with equal love and respect.

And yes! Team all the way!

[sg-fignewton.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't say I equally love all the characters, but I do try to handle them with equal love and respect.

Well, no. I don't think anyone could love them all equally. I know I don't pretend to do so! :) ::cough Daniel cough:: But you do handle them lovingly and respectfully, and I really do admire the way it is impossible to slot you into any particular peg of the fandom. Except teamy goodness, which is wheeee!!!

[pellucid.livejournal.com]

I think it's just a sign of the fact that I've surrounded myself with such an eclectic group of SG-1 folks that it's hard to remember why some folks would consider any of these something to apologize for! Sure, you and I don't agree on every point (Vala, for instance), but what's the fun in only hanging out with folks who always agree with you?!?!?!? ;)

One thing, though, that I meant to ask you to clarify back when we all had that gen discussion and never did, and now it's come back again here. What exactly do you mean by this: I am GEN for the show? Am I reading it correctly if I interpret it to mean "I don't want to see any romantic pairings on the show"? Or even "I don't see any romantic pairings on the show"? Or "I acknowledge really canon pairings like Daniel/Sha're, but that's it" and/or "...but I don't want them belabored as part of the plot"? Or is it none of those, and I'm just reading you wrong? It's something I've seen you say at various times, but I've never been entirely sure what you mean by it.

[moonshayde.livejournal.com]

I use gen in the way that fandom tends to use gen. I tune into the show to watch a bunch of teammates who are friends explore and save the universe. That's what it has been since Day One.

Meaning, I am not interested in seeing the members of SG-1 engage in romantic relationships with each other. Save that for fanfic. I just feel that interteam romance ruins the dynamic of the show. That goes for anyone - Cam/Vala, Sam/Daniel, Sam/Jack, Sam/Teal'c, Daniel/Vala, Jack/Daniel, etc. The more TPTB focus on a couple, the less time we get with the team. And from the start, this show has been about the team and it doesn't tend to lend itself well to romance.

I don't have an issue with non interteam canon relationships like Jack/Sara, Daniel/Sha're, Teal'c/Drey'auc, Sam/Pete...etc. (Well, they went overboard with Sam/Pete.) But those relationships usually are background relationships and don't take away from the team feel, in general. Nor does the occasional episode here or there when a character gets involved with someone off world or whatever.

Other shows are different. Like on farscape, they established from Day One that the John/Aeryn aspect of the show would be as central as John trying to find his way home. The focus is different between the two shows. That is why I am staunchly gen for SG-1. In the fandom, anything goes as far as I'm concerned.

[pellucid.livejournal.com]

Thanks! That's more or less what I thought you meant, but it's just a different way of framing it than I tend to do, so I wanted to make sure I was on the same page.

I don't think I tend to make divides as firmly between show canon and fandom stuff. I prefer not to see romance on the show, but that's mostly because it's never been done terribly well; if they could manage to do it well, I'd be okay with it, I think. I think I tend to consider the various kinds of chemistry and relationships between the characters on the show as points to spring off from in fic, and sometimes those relationships look like what we see on the show, and sometimes they don't so much, but it's all vaguely fluid in my mind. Obviously I'm not nearly as adept at explaining my own thinking as you are at explaining yours! ;)