Maybe it's just me, but I can't see why *anyone* would want to read 
an out-of-character fanfic.  As someone else pointed out, there's 
more to a character than just a name.  With the obvious exception of 
parody, if the author keeps the name and throws out the qualities 
that go with it, what's the appeal of the story?

Now, I feel I *must* answer this.  I'm writing a fic where Ranma is very
clearly OOC.  However, in spite of this, his life still goes exactly the
same damn way.  More or less.

I feel that, in making a point, just as with parody, it's okay... as long
as it is clearly marked. ^_^  (Just as OOC is fine, as long as it is
clearly marked as an elseworlds fic!)

Just as long as it's marked, then people are (mostly) happy.

Even further, if you read any fic which involves major changes to the
character's lives, you will see the characters developing into something
OOC.
For example, take almost ANY Ranma 1/2 continuation fic....

I believe that people were speaking about the start of a series, or of a
once-off fic ... if a situation happens that changes a character, then
that situation is obvious to the reader, and so it's an IC change - that
character went through the situation, and the reader can see the character
changing because of it.

I think what we're talking about here, by 'OOC', is someone writing a fic
with a character CLEARLY OOC, _without_ any reason as to why that
character changed!

Very different. Once is situation related, the other is just the whim of
the author. And that's why it should be marked as 'elseworlds' - it's
clearly nothing to do with Takahashi-sensei's characters if it starts and
ends with the character OOC, just because the author feels like writing
the character that way.

Kun-chan...
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* http://www.ecr.mu.oz.au/~caseawr *
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* High Priestess of Ryouga         *
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