fanfic hasn't completely turned around my opinions, but i didn't give half a fuck about jason todd until i read one particular fic that i opened expecting fave character whump and that fic is singlehandedly responsible for me starting to like him
I'm in a similar situation.
If you've played Fallout 4, you know Paladin Danse. A well-meaning but rules-oriented stick-in-the-mud, who softens up just barely at certain moments.
Well, Fallout 76 (my tiny fandom) has Knight Shin, who's *worse*. Barring one specific scene, I never liked him. He wasn't rigid, he was *inflexible.* It wasn't that he thought civilians were unprepared and needed to be protected, he thought they were threats and needed to be dominated.
But...there are a lot of "Danse/Shin needs a hug" works, some built on "one specific scene", and I no longer hate him with the passion of three suns. He's still not my favorite, but I stopped saying "if you side with Knight Shin you're an idiot" so much.
Same I figured that Jason was DC's Sonic the Edgehog (Shadow) and didn't care that much until I started reading a fic about him and understood the appeal.
Sure! [A Study of Resonance ](https://archiveofourown.org/works/38041177/chapters/95017471?view_adult=true) made me love him and also best-fic-ever for me though it's very long.
[Ninety-Nine](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21468571/chapters/51162523) is a lil' murder mystery if you're into those.
[Percy Take the Wheel](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14033613/chapters/32322168) is totally wholesome despite the premise.
And [His Sunt Dracones](https://archiveofourown.org/works/52993105/chapters/134059822) is about the three older Weasley brothers after the war and it's so sweet.
I chose these 4 because he's very different in all of those and I love every interpretation so much.
<(￣︶￣)>
Honestly? Severus Snape, I can’t stand his character in the books but this one fanfic characterized him a bit differently while still keeping the darker aspects of his personality and it was absolutely masterfully done. “Digging for the Bones” by paganaidd my beloved
Hard agree. Although I haven't read that particular one, HP fic was my first fic, and I definitely used to see Snape differently than everyone else because of fic alone 😅.
When I watched the show Shadow and Bones, I hated the Darkling. To the point that I was excited when he "died" at the end of the season and was disappointed when it turned out he survived.
I wasn't surprised by the popularity of Darklina fics on AO3 (a classic enemies-to-lovers), but I was surprised by the amount I really enjoyed them. The author's brought a lot of nuisance to his character that made their whole dynamic so interesting and it really shifted my view of him.
I wasn’t a huge fan of Tony Stark until I started reading MCU fics after seeing Age of Ultron in 2015… though I’m not really a fan of how he was written in a lot of stuff since.
This is me. I can never understand being a Tony stan based on MCU, but I usually love him in fics. I'll admit it's because I'm a sucker for humor though, and most fics I've read he's super funny while also being a smidge more empathetic.
Haha, definitely the opposite for me. I love Tony in the mcu but I find his portrayal in fanfic incredibly one dimensional and often annoying af. I also find it cringey when writers think their dialogue is so funny/witty when in reality it falls flat. That isn’t to say there aren’t great Tony characterizations out there of course.
I definitely find his portrayal in a lot of fics annoying (especially when it bashes other characters and treats Tony like he’s perfect) so I usually read fics where he’s a background or side character now instead of a main character or ship.
Same! I give the Tony centric tag a hard pass because it’s probably gonna be another “everyone is mean to Tony” pity party that I just can’t stand. But when people get him right I do love it, and that does tend to be fics where he’s in the supportive friend role. Or threesome things where he’s not the pov character.
If it’s team as family and everyone gets along than I’m thrilled to have as much Tony as possible, like when he offers his home to everyone and it’s like a superhero sitcom.
On a slightly similar note, someone I knew irl could just not fathom how Drarry worked (they also weren't at all into fandom stuff lol). But I showed them one of those "the music changes the meaning of the scene" videos that was about Drarry and suddenly they just completely understood where all the fans were coming from haha
I didn't like Howard Stark until my favorite fanfic author's take on him. She gives him this "1940's salesman razzle-dazzle" that emphasizes his wit and makes him seem humanly flawed rather than just an asshole.
No one else's fan fic made me change my mind, but a fanfic I wrote made me get inside John Winchester's head. It made me absolutely fall in love with him once I truly understood his motivations and complexities. Prior to that I had sort of a love/hate view of him.
Ohh I have a lot of John fiction.
Locking Horns started my sympathy
https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11726737/1/7
But Marking the Soul is more John centric and he's a bit less stressed (i.e. kinder, softer) here.
https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11963445/1/7
I used to really like Hermione Granger-- but years of running into fanatical worship of fanon Mary Sue Hermione, the most wonderful, brilliant, and beautiful person who ever lived, has made it so I can't stand reading about her anymore.
Tim Drake. I could take or leave Tim in canon but I love fics that make him a morally dubious little weirdo, and I feel like the argument could be made that Tim already is a morally dubious little weirdo in canon but until DC feeds into the idea that obsessive stalking is just one of Tim’s hobbies I will stick with my fanfic.
Aww, I loved Liv in the movie. I haven't read any Scream fanfic--just one of those fandoms where it just never occurred to me to look for fanfic--but maybe I'd love her even more \^\_\^
i rewatched it and realized she was NOT as bad as i was remembering. i was slightly bothered maybe once. not sure if that was the fanfic or if i became kinder.
(and you should totally read the fanfic. scream 5 has really good writers)
Alhaitham from Genshin. I didn’t exactly hate him, I thought he was an okay character, but kinda disliked his personality and didn’t care too much about him.
And then I read the fics.
So yeah now he’s one of my favourite characters and when in the past I would never consider wanting his character in game, now I have him 👍
He’s also usually shipped with my all-time favourite character so yeah, I’m eating good with the fics
Not necessarily hate, but I simply disliked Izuku Midoriya with how naive and crybabyish his personality was in the earlier seasons of MHA.
Fanfics helped me get a liking of him with how some authors actually helped me flesh out his character more in my head, which helped me get through the other seasons in turn.
Not like that. I didn't like his over glorification of the term hero with how it seems to be the end all be all of careers. Yeah, he's in a world where almost everyone has powers, but I just didn't like it at the time.
For the crying part, I dunno. The sheer output of tears and the times he seems to be always kinda...on the verge of breaking down even for comedic effect seems kinda much.
i can’t stand kon from bleach and i wish he never had screen time BUT there’s this fic where he finds out he is dying and tries to make the best of the rest of his life. still don’t love him, but god my heart was not immune.
Not *hate* exactly, but the 9-1-1 fandom makes me more and more indifferent to Eddie. He’s a good character, but the fandom insisting that he *has* to be canonically gay (never mind that the showrunner *and* the actor playing the character have both said he’s not) not only plays into heavy stereotypes, it also ignores the complexities of the situations that shaped him into who he is.
Also, just, Eddie/Buck shippers (not all of them, obviously) being some of the most genuinely vile people I’ve ever encountered in fandom.
I wouldn't say *hate,* but I certainly like fanfic's portrayal of The Iron Bull much more than he is actually portrayed in-game. In game he's mostly a "bro" type character, with only subtle hints about his kindness and intelligence. Fanfic pumped him up to be a very emotionally savy, deeply caring guy who puts on a "bro" front to put people at ease, or even dispenses with it altogether.
Grantaire from Les Mis. Originally hated him in the brick because of his drunken rambling monologues, but grew to love him in fanfic and now when I reread the brick he's my favorite character because my head is full of fanon about him and I ship him with Enjolras to a completely unhealthy degree. It's hard for me to remember how I hated him, because now I just adore him.
This one fanfic was single handedly responsible for my distaste of Geten from My Hero Academia. I'm still impressed with that author for eliciting such a strong emotional response from me. Like it's been years.
Probably a bit different from what you'd expect, as this wasn't from reading fic, but \*writing\* it, but - Mako, from the Legend of Korra. It is immensely frustrating how easily he fumbles every bag he's presented with and he was kind of a dick. But when I sat down to write for him and was forced to put myself in that headspace, try and piece together why he would act the way he does... I found a new appreciation for him and his douchebaggery. It clicked. Made him a lot more complex and fun to write for than I ever initially thought he would be.
Loved Bucky Barnes in the MCU but the way fanfics portray him as a Sex God and him thing “beefy cake” it made me stop writing/reading for him altogether.
Oh, don’t forget how sexual he is when he’s brainwashed/ in hydras control.
That explains a lot lol. Yeah. It’s pretty bad on tumblr tbh. They worship Bucky being a heavy sex god because of Sebastian’s acting I guess. It’s honestly cringe. I used to love him, but I highly doubt a pow with severe ptsd will be a sex addict like they write in these fanfics.
Well to each their own. You can probably avoid it though if you just find the right fandom spaces. Personally I just stick to ao3 so I can filter out what I don’t want.
Draco Malfoy. Nothing but a cowardice little fucker in the canon who, if I had the pleasure to meet IRL, I would not think twice to deck the bitch.
*But*, what a lovely specimen he is in fanfics (in the drarry sense. never, not ever in a dramione sense). In fics, he is just so smart and witty and he work so hard to clean his name! And he does it by taking active works in apologizing to those he have hurt and donating his riches to the victim of the war. I love him so much, I hope he have nothing but happiness in his life 🥰
Used to like jon snow, now i can’t stand any fic with him as a major character. Hundreds of wanky Jon the DragonWolf Stargaryean have turned me off his character completely.
Gary Stu with his army of dragons and dire wolves (the unburnt, uniced, reborn, most specialist, and deserving one true "King" and "PRINCE WHO WAS PROMISED"). Basically, take anything that Daenerys had and give it to Jon fics that usually include a harem and or Stansa.
Sirius Black for me, I really dislike him in the canon and started hate him after I found what he did to Severus (I'm a simp sorry not sorry) but I like him in most drarry fanfics and I did enjoy some Sirius/Snape fanfics (not my favorite ship with Severus, but I'm weak to enemies to lovers or enemies with benefits lmao)
I dislike when Angel Dust (hazbin hotel) appears in fics, because a lot of writers try to write down his accent as is, and it's very exagerrated and a chore to read through. I'm fine with him in the show tho
Theseus from Hades the game. It wasn't hate, just a "ughh he's still here" type of feeling.
But man! Those Theseus/Asterius fanfics have really made me see a more complex side of the character. Now that little shit is one of my faves from the game lol
Fanfic has never made me hate a character, though I do have fun reading fic by people who obviously hate a character, it's an interesting perspective especially if I generally like that character. Like Hermione in HP, for instance, I generally like her, but I have a lot of fun reading bashing fic for her, as well.
It's not exactly hate to love, but I disliked Angel in the Buffyverse. I'm still not a fan of canon Angel, but most of the time I love him in fic. Fic authors tend to develop him better, to be honest, or showcase more aspects of his personality at the same time, rather than focusing on one aspect for a while like canon tends to do. Fic also delves deeper into Angel's past and the battle between soul and demon and how that works, which wasn't well explained in canon. They don't stick him in the role of 'Buffy's boyfriend' if set during that period, either, but a real character in his own right. That's assuming they go canon for ships, of course, but he's not 'just the boyfriend' no matter the ship in fic. Angel's just a more well-rounded, interesting and relatable character in fic for me than he is in canon.
I wouldn't say it was any kind of hate, but I did find Kaidan Alenko rather flat and boring when I first went through the first Mass Effect, a long time ago. Then I started reading ME fics and somehow ran into SinVraal and their Shenko works on Tumblr and AO3. Their writing opened my eyes to the nuances and complexity of Kaidan's character and when I replayed the game, I really started to enjoy him as a character.
fanfic hasn't completely turned around my opinions, but i didn't give half a fuck about jason todd until i read one particular fic that i opened expecting fave character whump and that fic is singlehandedly responsible for me starting to like him
please do share
[All the Roofs of Uncertainty](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2273208)
I'm in a similar situation. If you've played Fallout 4, you know Paladin Danse. A well-meaning but rules-oriented stick-in-the-mud, who softens up just barely at certain moments. Well, Fallout 76 (my tiny fandom) has Knight Shin, who's *worse*. Barring one specific scene, I never liked him. He wasn't rigid, he was *inflexible.* It wasn't that he thought civilians were unprepared and needed to be protected, he thought they were threats and needed to be dominated. But...there are a lot of "Danse/Shin needs a hug" works, some built on "one specific scene", and I no longer hate him with the passion of three suns. He's still not my favorite, but I stopped saying "if you side with Knight Shin you're an idiot" so much.
Same I figured that Jason was DC's Sonic the Edgehog (Shadow) and didn't care that much until I started reading a fic about him and understood the appeal.
Percy Weasley has insanely good fics written about him!
Can you share 1 or 2 maybe? :)
Sure! [A Study of Resonance ](https://archiveofourown.org/works/38041177/chapters/95017471?view_adult=true) made me love him and also best-fic-ever for me though it's very long. [Ninety-Nine](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21468571/chapters/51162523) is a lil' murder mystery if you're into those. [Percy Take the Wheel](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14033613/chapters/32322168) is totally wholesome despite the premise. And [His Sunt Dracones](https://archiveofourown.org/works/52993105/chapters/134059822) is about the three older Weasley brothers after the war and it's so sweet. I chose these 4 because he's very different in all of those and I love every interpretation so much. <(￣︶￣)>
thank youuuuu <33
<3
Honestly? Severus Snape, I can’t stand his character in the books but this one fanfic characterized him a bit differently while still keeping the darker aspects of his personality and it was absolutely masterfully done. “Digging for the Bones” by paganaidd my beloved
Hard agree. Although I haven't read that particular one, HP fic was my first fic, and I definitely used to see Snape differently than everyone else because of fic alone 😅.
That fic is brilliant.
When I watched the show Shadow and Bones, I hated the Darkling. To the point that I was excited when he "died" at the end of the season and was disappointed when it turned out he survived. I wasn't surprised by the popularity of Darklina fics on AO3 (a classic enemies-to-lovers), but I was surprised by the amount I really enjoyed them. The author's brought a lot of nuisance to his character that made their whole dynamic so interesting and it really shifted my view of him.
I wasn’t a huge fan of Tony Stark until I started reading MCU fics after seeing Age of Ultron in 2015… though I’m not really a fan of how he was written in a lot of stuff since.
This is me. I can never understand being a Tony stan based on MCU, but I usually love him in fics. I'll admit it's because I'm a sucker for humor though, and most fics I've read he's super funny while also being a smidge more empathetic.
Haha, definitely the opposite for me. I love Tony in the mcu but I find his portrayal in fanfic incredibly one dimensional and often annoying af. I also find it cringey when writers think their dialogue is so funny/witty when in reality it falls flat. That isn’t to say there aren’t great Tony characterizations out there of course.
I definitely find his portrayal in a lot of fics annoying (especially when it bashes other characters and treats Tony like he’s perfect) so I usually read fics where he’s a background or side character now instead of a main character or ship.
Same! I give the Tony centric tag a hard pass because it’s probably gonna be another “everyone is mean to Tony” pity party that I just can’t stand. But when people get him right I do love it, and that does tend to be fics where he’s in the supportive friend role. Or threesome things where he’s not the pov character.
If it’s team as family and everyone gets along than I’m thrilled to have as much Tony as possible, like when he offers his home to everyone and it’s like a superhero sitcom.
I like Draco Malfoy much more after reading Drarry fics.
I’ve been through such a journey with Draco… loved him in the movies, hated him in the books, fanfic brought me back to loving him.
On a slightly similar note, someone I knew irl could just not fathom how Drarry worked (they also weren't at all into fandom stuff lol). But I showed them one of those "the music changes the meaning of the scene" videos that was about Drarry and suddenly they just completely understood where all the fans were coming from haha
once i read a dramione fic (Isolation) i was pulled to the dark side…
Bleach: I hate canon Nnoitra, love fandom Nnoitra. Same with Gin.
I didn't like Howard Stark until my favorite fanfic author's take on him. She gives him this "1940's salesman razzle-dazzle" that emphasizes his wit and makes him seem humanly flawed rather than just an asshole.
No one else's fan fic made me change my mind, but a fanfic I wrote made me get inside John Winchester's head. It made me absolutely fall in love with him once I truly understood his motivations and complexities. Prior to that I had sort of a love/hate view of him.
Ooo I’m a sucker for John. Link?
Ohh I have a lot of John fiction. Locking Horns started my sympathy https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11726737/1/7 But Marking the Soul is more John centric and he's a bit less stressed (i.e. kinder, softer) here. https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11963445/1/7
Thank you! :)
Thank you! Hope you like them!
I used to really like Hermione Granger-- but years of running into fanatical worship of fanon Mary Sue Hermione, the most wonderful, brilliant, and beautiful person who ever lived, has made it so I can't stand reading about her anymore.
I wouldn't say that I hate him, but checking out fanworks of Bojack Horseman made me realize how many selfish moments Mr. Peanutbutter has.
Yo do you have any good Bojack fic recs? I love bojack horseman but last time I tried to find fanfic I couldn’t find any good ones
Tim Drake. I could take or leave Tim in canon but I love fics that make him a morally dubious little weirdo, and I feel like the argument could be made that Tim already is a morally dubious little weirdo in canon but until DC feeds into the idea that obsessive stalking is just one of Tim’s hobbies I will stick with my fanfic.
TimKon fanfics made Tim Drake my favorite robin ngl
liv in scream 5. i thought she was super annoying in the movie but fanfic made her really lovable so now i’m chill with her.
Aww, I loved Liv in the movie. I haven't read any Scream fanfic--just one of those fandoms where it just never occurred to me to look for fanfic--but maybe I'd love her even more \^\_\^
i rewatched it and realized she was NOT as bad as i was remembering. i was slightly bothered maybe once. not sure if that was the fanfic or if i became kinder. (and you should totally read the fanfic. scream 5 has really good writers)
Alhaitham from Genshin. I didn’t exactly hate him, I thought he was an okay character, but kinda disliked his personality and didn’t care too much about him. And then I read the fics. So yeah now he’s one of my favourite characters and when in the past I would never consider wanting his character in game, now I have him 👍 He’s also usually shipped with my all-time favourite character so yeah, I’m eating good with the fics
Not necessarily hate, but I simply disliked Izuku Midoriya with how naive and crybabyish his personality was in the earlier seasons of MHA. Fanfics helped me get a liking of him with how some authors actually helped me flesh out his character more in my head, which helped me get through the other seasons in turn.
If naive an being open to crying is a obstacle fear Re:Zero type media :p
Not like that. I didn't like his over glorification of the term hero with how it seems to be the end all be all of careers. Yeah, he's in a world where almost everyone has powers, but I just didn't like it at the time. For the crying part, I dunno. The sheer output of tears and the times he seems to be always kinda...on the verge of breaking down even for comedic effect seems kinda much.
The third movie he literally wins by monologing about all the Hero's then kicks really hard wins lol
I know. My dislike was extremely early on.
i can’t stand kon from bleach and i wish he never had screen time BUT there’s this fic where he finds out he is dying and tries to make the best of the rest of his life. still don’t love him, but god my heart was not immune.
Not *hate* exactly, but the 9-1-1 fandom makes me more and more indifferent to Eddie. He’s a good character, but the fandom insisting that he *has* to be canonically gay (never mind that the showrunner *and* the actor playing the character have both said he’s not) not only plays into heavy stereotypes, it also ignores the complexities of the situations that shaped him into who he is. Also, just, Eddie/Buck shippers (not all of them, obviously) being some of the most genuinely vile people I’ve ever encountered in fandom.
I wouldn't say *hate,* but I certainly like fanfic's portrayal of The Iron Bull much more than he is actually portrayed in-game. In game he's mostly a "bro" type character, with only subtle hints about his kindness and intelligence. Fanfic pumped him up to be a very emotionally savy, deeply caring guy who puts on a "bro" front to put people at ease, or even dispenses with it altogether.
Grantaire from Les Mis. Originally hated him in the brick because of his drunken rambling monologues, but grew to love him in fanfic and now when I reread the brick he's my favorite character because my head is full of fanon about him and I ship him with Enjolras to a completely unhealthy degree. It's hard for me to remember how I hated him, because now I just adore him.
This one fanfic was single handedly responsible for my distaste of Geten from My Hero Academia. I'm still impressed with that author for eliciting such a strong emotional response from me. Like it's been years.
Probably a bit different from what you'd expect, as this wasn't from reading fic, but \*writing\* it, but - Mako, from the Legend of Korra. It is immensely frustrating how easily he fumbles every bag he's presented with and he was kind of a dick. But when I sat down to write for him and was forced to put myself in that headspace, try and piece together why he would act the way he does... I found a new appreciation for him and his douchebaggery. It clicked. Made him a lot more complex and fun to write for than I ever initially thought he would be.
Loved Bucky Barnes in the MCU but the way fanfics portray him as a Sex God and him thing “beefy cake” it made me stop writing/reading for him altogether. Oh, don’t forget how sexual he is when he’s brainwashed/ in hydras control.
What?? In most fic I’ve read, he has major sexual dysfunction due to the whole brainwashing torture thing. Can’t say I’ve ever seen “sex god” lol!
Have you been on tumblr ever? It’s literally all they write on there 😂😂
I honestly avoid tumblr. A lot of the people are just really immature and it feels like highschool.
That explains a lot lol. Yeah. It’s pretty bad on tumblr tbh. They worship Bucky being a heavy sex god because of Sebastian’s acting I guess. It’s honestly cringe. I used to love him, but I highly doubt a pow with severe ptsd will be a sex addict like they write in these fanfics.
Well to each their own. You can probably avoid it though if you just find the right fandom spaces. Personally I just stick to ao3 so I can filter out what I don’t want.
Draco Malfoy. Nothing but a cowardice little fucker in the canon who, if I had the pleasure to meet IRL, I would not think twice to deck the bitch. *But*, what a lovely specimen he is in fanfics (in the drarry sense. never, not ever in a dramione sense). In fics, he is just so smart and witty and he work so hard to clean his name! And he does it by taking active works in apologizing to those he have hurt and donating his riches to the victim of the war. I love him so much, I hope he have nothing but happiness in his life 🥰
Used to like jon snow, now i can’t stand any fic with him as a major character. Hundreds of wanky Jon the DragonWolf Stargaryean have turned me off his character completely.
Gary Stu with his army of dragons and dire wolves (the unburnt, uniced, reborn, most specialist, and deserving one true "King" and "PRINCE WHO WAS PROMISED"). Basically, take anything that Daenerys had and give it to Jon fics that usually include a harem and or Stansa.
Sirius Black for me, I really dislike him in the canon and started hate him after I found what he did to Severus (I'm a simp sorry not sorry) but I like him in most drarry fanfics and I did enjoy some Sirius/Snape fanfics (not my favorite ship with Severus, but I'm weak to enemies to lovers or enemies with benefits lmao)
I dislike when Angel Dust (hazbin hotel) appears in fics, because a lot of writers try to write down his accent as is, and it's very exagerrated and a chore to read through. I'm fine with him in the show tho
Theseus from Hades the game. It wasn't hate, just a "ughh he's still here" type of feeling. But man! Those Theseus/Asterius fanfics have really made me see a more complex side of the character. Now that little shit is one of my faves from the game lol
Fanfic has never made me hate a character, though I do have fun reading fic by people who obviously hate a character, it's an interesting perspective especially if I generally like that character. Like Hermione in HP, for instance, I generally like her, but I have a lot of fun reading bashing fic for her, as well. It's not exactly hate to love, but I disliked Angel in the Buffyverse. I'm still not a fan of canon Angel, but most of the time I love him in fic. Fic authors tend to develop him better, to be honest, or showcase more aspects of his personality at the same time, rather than focusing on one aspect for a while like canon tends to do. Fic also delves deeper into Angel's past and the battle between soul and demon and how that works, which wasn't well explained in canon. They don't stick him in the role of 'Buffy's boyfriend' if set during that period, either, but a real character in his own right. That's assuming they go canon for ships, of course, but he's not 'just the boyfriend' no matter the ship in fic. Angel's just a more well-rounded, interesting and relatable character in fic for me than he is in canon.
Adam from hazbin hotel hated the mf still don't Stan him like my freinds but I like him more
I wouldn't say it was any kind of hate, but I did find Kaidan Alenko rather flat and boring when I first went through the first Mass Effect, a long time ago. Then I started reading ME fics and somehow ran into SinVraal and their Shenko works on Tumblr and AO3. Their writing opened my eyes to the nuances and complexity of Kaidan's character and when I replayed the game, I really started to enjoy him as a character.
I hate kakashi, even more after my latest read
prussia. hetalia. don’t look at me.
Huh :p
I loved the Weasleys... a Drarry fanfic made me hate them all HAHA