7 / 13 (any character you wish to! if you have no idea tho--maybe karen from gsc's elite four??) / 14
salty ask meme. content warning: if you dislike varying opinions, please go ahead and skip this post. it will not be under a read more.
7. Is there anything you used to like but can’t stand now?*
Does certain characters due to their interpretations of them count? If so, then yes.
I don’t like my favorite characters highly sexualized and turned into nothing but fuck toys for others amusements. If others do, fine, just don’t involve me in it.
I don’t like my favorite characters reduced to stereotypes as well. It’s fine to take it as a joke every now and then, but when it becomes prominent, it gets tiresome to deal with.
I like continuity; I like creating stories.
13. Unpopular opinion about XXX character?
I … actually don’t have an opinion on Karen. I’ve never really thought about her character beyond her design and her specialty.
Okay, let’s go with characters in general.
One thing to keep in mind, that folks seem to keep forgetting, is that all stories are written with a bias, and it’s virtually impossible to remove it. In the case of the games, they’re written to ensure that the ‘hero’ of the story is almost always your character. It’s a fairly common thing, extending outside of the pokemon fandom. If not the ‘hero’ you’re the villain, which would be the case of say Marche Radiuju from final fantasy tactics advanced.
You play a character who’s goal is to ‘head home.’ It seems like a noble goal, right?
Well, in this world, your little brother isn’t sick anymore able to live freely and on his own, for once in his life he isn’t in the hospital, bedridden or wheelchair bound to the point he can’t even wheel on the worst days. He doesn’t have to be constantly reminded he could die at anytime. Your best male friend has his mother back to life and his father has become a respectable man instead of the drunkard who’s on the verge of losing their home. And your female friend (who can be your romantic interest as well) is free from the angst of being bullied for her naturally white hair that gets even her mother down every time she stares at her.
Along your journey, they tell you about their struggles in the real world. They fight you because they want to protect this world, and how they can’t return to that other world.
You still return everyone home, and everyone still likes you in the end.You’re still the ‘hero’ for bringing everyone back from the final fantasy world to the real world.Everyone just accepts the fate their given in the real world.
The same could apply to plenty of characters here. The game’s mechanics make it so that certain things have to happen in order for the ‘hero’ to be the hero. In the case for pokemon, it means that it would seem that plenty of league members would take a back seat to the protag or that the villainous characters are easily taken down by a teen or even less than depending on the game.
It’s what keeps it a ‘children’s game.’
14. Unpopular opinion about your fandom?
I don’t like the idea of ‘blank slates’ when it comes to prominent NPCs.
This includes members of the League such as Gym Leaders or even the player’s mom in GSC/HGSS. They’re NOT blank. THEY HAVE A FRAME, a base to build off. There’s quotes that can be pulled off from the characters themselves and from those around them. Depending on the game, there’s even the fame checker. The television within the games sometimes gives a clue as to the characters of the character themselves. It can go as far as their general designs giving a clue onto their character.
People take inspiration from other sources all the time, but there’s also plenty that can be taken from the primary source.
People need to stop pulling out content from other sources without properly adapting it to their character. Slapping on ‘inspired by’ when a huge amount to the point the only part of the character that isn’t from the original source is a few missing major events it’s not ‘inspired by’ any more, IT’S JUST A CANON DIVERGENT / AU OF A CHARACTER.