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mari4212Otherwise known as, turn and run the other way as fast as possible.
I've had a lot of fandoms, and in most of them, I've had ships, to one degree or another. So who do I ship, why do I ship them, and what are some underlying similarities in my ships?
Starting with my earliest ship, Janeway/Chakotay from Star Trek: Voyager (Sorry![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
pikacharma)
To start with, this was an easy ship for me. The characters were both interesting, and they fit well together. They had the same major goals, and a lot of the same ideals. And for two people who were supposed to start out as semi-antagonists, given that she was sent to go find and arrest him, they got along surprisingly well. And then you get episodes like Resolutions, Year of Hell, or Coda, which, you know, make the ship canon, in a gen way. But I think the one thing that really made this pairing work for me was the way they understood each other and backed each other up, both in their duties and off.
Interestingly enough, I never really got into Paris/Torres. I mean, I accepted that it was a ship, accepted that it was canon, even read a lot of fic about them, but they never clicked as being interesting to me. It was a case where they were present, yeah, but I didn't care that much. Most likely, this is because large portions of their relationship seemed built on fighting and mock-fighting as a method of communication. I'm extremely confrontation-avoidant by nature, so to me fighting doesn't mean a passionate relationship, it means one that's going to make me uncomfortable.
Moving on, my next big ship was Harm/Mac from JAG.
You know, a few years away from the end of this show, I'm still not sure what my feelings about this pairing are. There was a time when I absolutely loved it, when I bounced excitedly because their friendship worked so well, and it was the foundation for any ship with them.
But I had a lot of problems with the show, after a while. It really went on too long, and it destroyed aspects of itself in the last few years, to the point where I didn't care anymore what happened. I'm still ambivalent about it now, though I love catching episodes from some of the early seasons at random points. "I want what any woman wants. A good man, a great career, and comfortable shoes. Lots and lots of them." had to count as one of my favorite lines, and it's very symbolic of their early relationship, where it was obvious that their friendship trumped all else.
Stargate Atlantis.
I think this is the first time where my big ship isn't canon or strongly implied in canon. Because I tend to ship McKay/Weir, and there's almost no support there.
So why them? Partially, I think it's because of the way the two of them interact. McKay is rude and brusque with everyone, unless he's tied his tongue up in knots because he has a crush on them/knows that they like him. And yet, he's never like that to her. He's got a strongly established disliking for the social sciences, yet he never once shows any disrespect towards her, nor allows anyone else to do so. And he stands up to a man who tortured him, rather than let her get killed, and does so without thinking about it. Because once he does start thinking about it, he immediately backpedals and starts trying to explain how he's invaluable as well, and they aren't allowed to kill him either. He respects her and trusts her, and I have a feeling that his trust and respect are very hard to earn.
And Elizabeth tends to be very tender towards McKay, most of the time. It's not as obvious, but she has her moments when she seems to understand him better than anyone else around.
So again, there's a deep friendship, with a possibility for a relationship that builds from the friendship.
And now I brace myself and dive into the scariness that is the battleground of Harry Potter ships.
I'll be blunt. I've never cared that much about Ron/Hermione. As I mentioned above, with my feelings on Paris/Torres, I don't like an argumentative relationship. But I tolerate it more with the Voyager pairing than I do with Ron/Hermione. And that's because, at least with Paris/Torres, there was a sense that they were learning from their fights. With Ron/Hermione, they keep arguing about the same points over and over again, and they never settle things. They just wait until the argument hits personal territory, get off a few nasty shots at each other, and then sulk until something happens, at which point they drop the argument and go off to help Harry. So while I accept that it's canon, and I know a lot of people enjoy the fiery nature of their relationship, it just makes me uncomfortable. I'd want them both to learn how to argue and resolve issues before I'd be comfortable in a long-term relationship with them. I see them more as a school relationship rather than long-term.
I used to be more of a Harry/Hermione shipper. I liked how there were several points where they both seemed to intuit what the other person was thinking, and I liked their friendship. And as I've shown, I've long been in favor of romances progressing out of close friendships. Long-term, I'm still not sure about them. I think they'd be more compatible than Ron/Hermione would be, but I still don't see what they have that would bond them together as a couple. These days, I really don't see any of the trio getting together long-term.
These days, my focus seems to be Dumbledore/McGonagall. They just click for me. There's that strong respect and affection between the two, and they support each other well.
Thoughts, anyone?
I've had a lot of fandoms, and in most of them, I've had ships, to one degree or another. So who do I ship, why do I ship them, and what are some underlying similarities in my ships?
Starting with my earliest ship, Janeway/Chakotay from Star Trek: Voyager (Sorry
pikacharma)To start with, this was an easy ship for me. The characters were both interesting, and they fit well together. They had the same major goals, and a lot of the same ideals. And for two people who were supposed to start out as semi-antagonists, given that she was sent to go find and arrest him, they got along surprisingly well. And then you get episodes like Resolutions, Year of Hell, or Coda, which, you know, make the ship canon, in a gen way. But I think the one thing that really made this pairing work for me was the way they understood each other and backed each other up, both in their duties and off.
Interestingly enough, I never really got into Paris/Torres. I mean, I accepted that it was a ship, accepted that it was canon, even read a lot of fic about them, but they never clicked as being interesting to me. It was a case where they were present, yeah, but I didn't care that much. Most likely, this is because large portions of their relationship seemed built on fighting and mock-fighting as a method of communication. I'm extremely confrontation-avoidant by nature, so to me fighting doesn't mean a passionate relationship, it means one that's going to make me uncomfortable.
Moving on, my next big ship was Harm/Mac from JAG.
You know, a few years away from the end of this show, I'm still not sure what my feelings about this pairing are. There was a time when I absolutely loved it, when I bounced excitedly because their friendship worked so well, and it was the foundation for any ship with them.
But I had a lot of problems with the show, after a while. It really went on too long, and it destroyed aspects of itself in the last few years, to the point where I didn't care anymore what happened. I'm still ambivalent about it now, though I love catching episodes from some of the early seasons at random points. "I want what any woman wants. A good man, a great career, and comfortable shoes. Lots and lots of them." had to count as one of my favorite lines, and it's very symbolic of their early relationship, where it was obvious that their friendship trumped all else.
Stargate Atlantis.
I think this is the first time where my big ship isn't canon or strongly implied in canon. Because I tend to ship McKay/Weir, and there's almost no support there.
So why them? Partially, I think it's because of the way the two of them interact. McKay is rude and brusque with everyone, unless he's tied his tongue up in knots because he has a crush on them/knows that they like him. And yet, he's never like that to her. He's got a strongly established disliking for the social sciences, yet he never once shows any disrespect towards her, nor allows anyone else to do so. And he stands up to a man who tortured him, rather than let her get killed, and does so without thinking about it. Because once he does start thinking about it, he immediately backpedals and starts trying to explain how he's invaluable as well, and they aren't allowed to kill him either. He respects her and trusts her, and I have a feeling that his trust and respect are very hard to earn.
And Elizabeth tends to be very tender towards McKay, most of the time. It's not as obvious, but she has her moments when she seems to understand him better than anyone else around.
So again, there's a deep friendship, with a possibility for a relationship that builds from the friendship.
And now I brace myself and dive into the scariness that is the battleground of Harry Potter ships.
I'll be blunt. I've never cared that much about Ron/Hermione. As I mentioned above, with my feelings on Paris/Torres, I don't like an argumentative relationship. But I tolerate it more with the Voyager pairing than I do with Ron/Hermione. And that's because, at least with Paris/Torres, there was a sense that they were learning from their fights. With Ron/Hermione, they keep arguing about the same points over and over again, and they never settle things. They just wait until the argument hits personal territory, get off a few nasty shots at each other, and then sulk until something happens, at which point they drop the argument and go off to help Harry. So while I accept that it's canon, and I know a lot of people enjoy the fiery nature of their relationship, it just makes me uncomfortable. I'd want them both to learn how to argue and resolve issues before I'd be comfortable in a long-term relationship with them. I see them more as a school relationship rather than long-term.
I used to be more of a Harry/Hermione shipper. I liked how there were several points where they both seemed to intuit what the other person was thinking, and I liked their friendship. And as I've shown, I've long been in favor of romances progressing out of close friendships. Long-term, I'm still not sure about them. I think they'd be more compatible than Ron/Hermione would be, but I still don't see what they have that would bond them together as a couple. These days, I really don't see any of the trio getting together long-term.
These days, my focus seems to be Dumbledore/McGonagall. They just click for me. There's that strong respect and affection between the two, and they support each other well.
Thoughts, anyone?
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no subject
Date: 2007-01-14 08:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-01-14 08:47 pm (UTC)Remus/Sirius I think would either be absolutely wonderful or a complete disaster, depending on how they went about it. Because it seems like in canon, when they are working together and talking, they're good for each other, but that they also have a habit of not communicating properly. It would depend on the fic writer whether or not I'd buy it in a story.
Remus/Tonks. I'm not sure how I feel on this. I didn't like how JKR made it seem like Tonks was so depressed by not being with Remus that she turned into a shadow of herself, mainly because it didn't seem like a healthy response to it. I'd really have to see more interaction between the two of them before I could buy it. Again, a good fic writer could sell me on it if they did it well.
As for choosing between the two ships, well, I have no preference, but if Remus is with Tonks, he gets a better chance at a happy ending.
no subject
Date: 2007-01-14 08:17 pm (UTC)It seems like there's an underlying theme of not only friendship, but mutual respect between the characters you 'ship. Like, even though Janeway and Chakotay started off on opposite "sides," they always seemed to hold each other in high regard. I think that would explain why you don't like R/Hr, because while I by no means think it's an unhealthy relationship, "respectful" isn't in the Top Five adjectives I'd use to describe them. XD Harry and Hermione do seem to hold each other in fairly high regard. However, I never necessarily thought that they really "get" each other. IMHO, hobviously.
It also seems like you like 'ships in which the characters would be okay on their own - like they don't absolutely need each other. Dumbledore and McGonagall are highly competent individuals who do fine on their own, which is why I agree that they'd make a good couple since they wouldn't let the other person overwhelm them. They'd be partners instead of one half of a whole.
If I'm putting words in your mouth, feel free to layeth on the smack down. : P
No smackdown needed.
Date: 2007-01-14 08:54 pm (UTC)Yeah, in general I do tend to go for relationships that are true partnerships. It just tends to feel more balanced that way. Although I do think that if the partnerships continued long-term, it would begin to feel like two halves of a whole, in the sense that each person's strengths and weaknesses played well with the others to such an extent that they were stronger together. But they can survive on their own if need be. In fact, I don't think I've ever actually gotten Albus and Minerva together in one of my fics. They just sort of mutually decided that while they loved each other, they didn't have the time for a relationship until it was too late.
Re: No smackdown needed.
Date: 2007-01-14 09:09 pm (UTC)I think that's a really cool take on their relationship - as in, I can almost see it being canon. Hmmmmm...
And heh, my 'shipping is so totally off-the-wall weird. Maybe writing it out will help me understand why my pairing preferences tend to be so very, very messed up. XD
Re: No smackdown needed.
Date: 2007-01-14 10:46 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-01-14 08:56 pm (UTC)I can see what you mean about Ron and Hermione. Their arguing is more the cliche that signals the inevitable relationship rather than anything productive. So, while I've expected it for a long time, I'm not terribly impressed at the way JKR has handled it so far. I will say that Hermione seems like one of those people who always has advice for other people's relationships, but is a little embarrassed when it comes to her own, judging by her reluctance to talk about Krum. I don't see her potentially acting any differently from the way she does with Ron if it were Harry she were interested in. Because Harry is almost as much of a twit with girls as Ron is. Not quite, but almost.
At any rate, I've never wanted to see Harry and Hermione as a couple. I like their friendship for the same reasons you do, but I like it as a friendship. I don't see it as the type of friendship out of which passion will someday blossom (and I think you need the passion as much as the mutual respect). Part of it is that I like seeing a portrayal of a boy and girl simply being friends, and having a deep friendship, which is something a lot of people assume isn't really possible. For that matter, I really favored Krum for Hermione, partly because I like the idea of the three main characters just being friends, and forming their romantic ties with secondary characters, and partly because Krum isn't nearly as much of an idiot as both Harry or Ron have been when it comes to girls.
no subject
Date: 2007-01-14 08:59 pm (UTC)Okay, seriously. Janeway\Chakotay isn't a crazy ship at all, IMHO. It's one I'm not personally into, but I can definitely see the appeal and the basis behind it. It's not like they were gonna make J7 canon anyways, so no skin off my nose (though admittedly, after seeing Someone To Watch Over Me, I had a bit of a softspot for Doctor\Seven, which leaves Janeway wide open for Chakotay XP). Only thing that makes me wanna cuss and throw things is Chakotay\Seven. Just..WHAT?!
no subject
Date: 2007-01-14 10:45 pm (UTC)Doctor/Seven is definitely cute, and a pretty cool mesh of personalities/experiences.
Chakotay/Seven is proof that B and B lost their collective wits at the end of season seven. There's just no other explanation possible.
no subject
Date: 2007-01-15 12:44 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-01-15 02:55 am (UTC)