1) EXACTLY. I couldn't have put it better. It's shallow, stupid and boring. Yeah, everyone has a different taste, but I don't think it's "taste" when Draco suddenly goes all whiny and weak, needing Harry to protect him from everyone and everything. That's tasteless, I think. I can't stand one-sidedness. Where one is the stronger/more intelligent/better looking/whatever one, while the other needs the one to change him before they get into a relationship. Which leads me to makeovers. I've read countless of stories where Harry suddenly "goes cool", having some revelation that wearing Dudley's old clothes isn't too fashionable, and changes his whole wardrobe into black/generally dark colours and leather, more often than not also getting a tattoo/piercing and growing his hair simply because the author thinks that's sexy. What? The canon Harry wasn't good enough? Authors are almighty and might shape the characters until they are perfect? I don't like Harry's paranoia concering Snape. I don't like Draco being a coward. But that's how they are. People aren't supposed to be perfect. Or the same but in a different setting: Draco and Harry get together, and the very first thing Draco does is take Harry shopping. What, Harry was good enough to start a relationship with, but now that it's established, he needs to be enhanced? Please. Sure, Harry's clothing is horrible. Nobody would like it (well, those of the HipHop fraction). But the concept of Harry having to be dragged off by a bunch of Slytherins who buy him a whole new wardrobe of designer clothes before he "can be seen with a Malfoy"... I don't want to read that. I want to read something where Draco likes Harry the way he is. He can dislike his clothing, alright. But it's still Harry's own decision what he wears. I dislike the whole concept of starting a relationship with someone under the condition that that someone needs to be improved. That's not what real love should be about. I don't want to read about perfect people. I want to read about a perfect relationship, but that doesn't mean I don't want them to fight. Fighting is necessary. A "perfect" relationship isn't a flawless one, I think. It's when they can fight and rage and hate each other, when they can dislike certain aspects of each other, but still stay together, because they love each other. (Now it's official! I'm a sap.)
I ranted a bit, sorry! Now I try to be short and to the point: I dislike "I love him since the day we first met but he'll never love me back - oh he does love me too! Yay!", "'Why do you hate me so much Draco?!' - 'Oh that's because of the day on the train in first year. You didn't want to be my friend.' - 'I'm so sorry. I changed my mind. Let's have a meaningful relationship.' - 'Ok.'", and I can't stand the Dursleys suddenly going evil. Even if Vernon suddenly went berserk and started to hit Harry, Harry wouldn't just let it happen, thinking "They'll take my wand if I do anything". He'd go "Fuck you!" and hex him, if only with a Petrificus Totalus, get his things and get out of there. Or worse; Vernon rapes Harry. Big no-go for me. Those aren't things that make me turn away from a story (to be honest, barely anything does if it's not too out of character and illogical/badly written), but if it isn't written extraordinary well, so at least everything afterwards makes sense, I'll most likely stop sometime, because I'm just not into it.
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Date: 2008-06-04 03:23 pm (UTC)I can't stand one-sidedness. Where one is the stronger/more intelligent/better looking/whatever one, while the other needs the one to change him before they get into a relationship. Which leads me to makeovers. I've read countless of stories where Harry suddenly "goes cool", having some revelation that wearing Dudley's old clothes isn't too fashionable, and changes his whole wardrobe into black/generally dark colours and leather, more often than not also getting a tattoo/piercing and growing his hair simply because the author thinks that's sexy.
What? The canon Harry wasn't good enough? Authors are almighty and might shape the characters until they are perfect? I don't like Harry's paranoia concering Snape. I don't like Draco being a coward. But that's how they are. People aren't supposed to be perfect.
Or the same but in a different setting: Draco and Harry get together, and the very first thing Draco does is take Harry shopping. What, Harry was good enough to start a relationship with, but now that it's established, he needs to be enhanced? Please.
Sure, Harry's clothing is horrible. Nobody would like it (well, those of the HipHop fraction). But the concept of Harry having to be dragged off by a bunch of Slytherins who buy him a whole new wardrobe of designer clothes before he "can be seen with a Malfoy"... I don't want to read that. I want to read something where Draco likes Harry the way he is. He can dislike his clothing, alright. But it's still Harry's own decision what he wears. I dislike the whole concept of starting a relationship with someone under the condition that that someone needs to be improved. That's not what real love should be about.
I don't want to read about perfect people. I want to read about a perfect relationship, but that doesn't mean I don't want them to fight. Fighting is necessary. A "perfect" relationship isn't a flawless one, I think. It's when they can fight and rage and hate each other, when they can dislike certain aspects of each other, but still stay together, because they love each other. (Now it's official! I'm a sap.)
I ranted a bit, sorry!
Now I try to be short and to the point: I dislike "I love him since the day we first met but he'll never love me back - oh he does love me too! Yay!", "'Why do you hate me so much Draco?!' - 'Oh that's because of the day on the train in first year. You didn't want to be my friend.' - 'I'm so sorry. I changed my mind. Let's have a meaningful relationship.' - 'Ok.'", and I can't stand the Dursleys suddenly going evil. Even if Vernon suddenly went berserk and started to hit Harry, Harry wouldn't just let it happen, thinking "They'll take my wand if I do anything". He'd go "Fuck you!" and hex him, if only with a Petrificus Totalus, get his things and get out of there. Or worse; Vernon rapes Harry. Big no-go for me.
Those aren't things that make me turn away from a story (to be honest, barely anything does if it's not too out of character and illogical/badly written), but if it isn't written extraordinary well, so at least everything afterwards makes sense, I'll most likely stop sometime, because I'm just not into it.