On 24 Dec 97 at 18:53, fanfic@fanfic.com wrote:

Just because *you* think that tags are unneccessary doesn't mean that 
others share the same belief. Myself, I much prefer to know 
beforehand if the fanfic I'm reading is going to take a darker turn 
or not, or if it's a lemon, or anything like that. How about that 
"Kagato's Revenge" fanfic, eh? Doesn't that one just scream for the 
[Pre-teen RAPE] tag? How about Aikan Muyo! (hope I spelled that 
right), a very good fic that deserves a [LEMON] tag, and shouldn't be 
ashamed of it - it's a well-written lemon. Or the one that started 
this, which deserves a [DARK] tag, and again should not be ashamed of 
it - it's well written, and good.

And just how do you define just what is "Dark", much less the various shades of 

darkness? 

These kinds of tags sound good on paper, but they don't really tell you anything in 

reality. 

I'm willing to bet my defination of dark isn't quite the same as yours. I'm also willing to 

bet 

that the folks who don't write and read Ranma fanfics don't exactly have the same 

viewpoint 

of what consitutes darkness that the folks that do read and write Ranma fanfics.

Different strokes for different folks....

True, but some kind of warning would still be nice. If the author 
thinks the fic may be a bit (or more) on the dark side, then he 
should say so (beware the Dark Side, young Skywalker....). Similarly 
with lemons (which are, admittedly, a bit easier to define). Or YAOI 
fics.

Again, how would this really work out in the real world? Let's take the AMG/Hellblazer 
crossover "Dire Fates" for an example. Is Dire Fates really any "darker" than either of the 
series it draws upon? I'ld say no. It's most certainly isn't darker than the DC comic 
Hellblazer, and I'ld say it's just as darkish as the ending of the 4th and the begining of 5th 
episodes of the AMG OVA series. 

When in doubt, tag it. If people don't think it deserves the tag, 
they'll let you know. It's better to err on the side of caution than 
to lose a reader because you *didn't* tag.

This is silly. How can a fanfic be tagged as being "dark" when it may not be really "dark"  
given the context of the series it's based on? Despite what you may think, there is a very 
real "dark" side to the AMG universe. Urd is half demon, remember? Skuld can be a spoiled 
brat. Belldany has a really nasty temper. 

Let's look at another series: Gargoyles from Disney. Exactly what would be not considered 
"dark" in a fanfic that was based on this series? Not very much if your logic was used, 
especially if you looked at  just what went on in the 1st and 2nd seasons of this show.