***Well.  I guess it's my turn to throw in a comment or two.





How many people are going to show up for classes taught by a

special?





About as many blacks originally were willing to show up for classes in white
schools, that is the type of descrimination that appears to be described,
the specials are labled, kept tabs on, and have assassins ready to kill them
if they act up with their powers.



***Well how many blacks are still willing to go to all white schools?  I
don't think this was quite the example that you hoped it to be.  But I'll
stop from further expanding on it, because it is of little relevance to this
list.



***This whole debate on cannon, OOC and otaku who make comments on
OOC-ness...  What is a fanfic?  It is a piece of fiction that is written by
fans based upon the characters and situations of other authors...in our area
here, Anime.  Given that, we do have limitations that we work within in
writing a fanfic...even in Alts (they just tend to be much more broad). 
Since the fanfic is using already defined material there are some general
characterizations that everyone accepts about the characters and the
situation.  When you change elements of this creating an ALT fic you are
creating an interpretation of the characters that differs from what is
"cannon."  However, they still do bear some resemblance to their original
selves.  The ALT fic sets up an alternate reality from the original in
showing a point of divergence where an event or events have come to change
the characters and situation thus creating the differentiation from the
original story and characterizations.



***Someone claimed interpretation.  That does indeed exist and is what gives
each fic its different flavor, however, would you call someone who spits in
everyone's face and beats them daily taking their money nice?  No you
wouldn't...not without something else to explain this you wouldn't say "well
my interpretation of that behavior is that he/she is merely unsure how to
interact with other people, but is actually a sweet giving person."  Let's
take Deborah Goldsmith's "Genma's Daughter."  There was a lot of comments on
OOC-ness on this one.  A lot of people didn't agree with her
characterizations and reasons for the changes in the characters.  I am one
of them, but we agreed to disagree.  I think her writing is great though,
and I read Equal Halves, which got a bit of a response as well.  After
reading that I can see what she was trying to say about her characterization
of Ranma, and while I still don't particularly care of "Genma's Daughter" I
found "Equal Halves" to enjoyable.  I don't think the issue here is entirely
that some otaku can't accept a different view of the characters (though I
know there are undoubtly some out there), but rather there is an actual
characterization of the characters that is accepted by most as the baseline
to begin with and divergence from that has to be explained in some way in
the fic.





I dunno, let's see you strive your whole life, suffer indignities, tortures,
and other various problems just to achieve something.  Another person is
just born with it.  Now I don't see any reason why thier would be prejudice
from one to another, do you (sarcasm if you don't note it).

<SNIP>



***Hmm.  Let's see someone is born rich and someone is born middle class. 
One person can afford to get a new BMW when they start college and again
when they graduate, but the other is driving the same old used Honda Civic
they bought.  Here's another, one person is born white and one person is
born black, and they will have very different life experiences even if they
grow up together in the same town and school.  So, should one hate the
other?  Is there going to be violent prejudice between them?  Probably not. 
Life isn't fair, you just gotta take what you've got and do the best you can
with it...there are somethings we have no control over.  I don't see
anything different about the situation than "normal" life for the Takahashi
universe.



***Now to my direct comments on the fic.  Within what the author gives us,
Akane's initial reaction to finding out Ranma is a special isn't so OOC,
however, like with the X-Men problem...I don't see how being a "special" is
so special in the Takahashi Universe.  Saffron, Herb, the Phoenix tribe,
Cologne, Happosai... don't they qualify as "specials?"  What about
Jyusenkyou and magic?  As to the rest of the initial meeting and a comment
along the line about Akane logic...I don't think it's necessarily simple. 
Rather like the Kuno problem is often described as... ignoring reality. 
Otherwise she is portrayed as a fairly intelligent individual (and my
knowledge is based more upon the English dub Anime than the few Japanese
language Manga I've read).



***Not that Ranma is a total idiot, but...

Ranma sighed and looked to where Akane had gone upstairs. "Another person
who hates us for reasons beyond our control. I run into a lot of those. Its
quite sad really."



Seems a bit out of context...



Just a few commemnets.



J

J



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