We Always Hurt the One We Love ... and then turn him into a sorry-ass, emasculated, mentally unstable, whiny, co-dependent tag-along
You may be looking for We Always Hurt the Ones We Love, an essay by Lucy Gillam in the Fanfic Symposium series.
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| Title: | We Always Hurt the One We Love ... and then turn him into a sorry-ass, emasculated, mentally unstable, whiny, co-dependent tag-along |
| Creator: | Helena Handbasket |
| Date(s): | December 2, 1999 |
| Medium: | online |
| Fandom: | Hercules: The Legendary Journeys |
| Topic: | |
| External Links: | The Less Than Legendary Journeys: We Always Hurt the One We Love by Helena Handbasket, Archived version |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
We Always Hurt the One We Love ... and then turn him into a sorry-ass, emasculated, mentally unstable, whiny, co-dependent tag-along is an essay by Helena Handbasket.
It's focus is characterization, Iolaus, and Hercules: The Legendary Journeys.
Excerpt
Picture a pale figure, swathed in moonlight that filters down from the small, barred window of a dingy jail cell. He lies crumpled in a corner, his sunken chest rising and falling in halting, shallow breaths. He's badly broken and bruised. One eye is swollen from a carelessly unanticipated left-hook, the other red and puffy from a prolific outpouring of tears. Could there be anything more attractive than such a sight?Yes, goddammit! Now someone please kick Andy Dick to the curb and bring back the real Iolaus!
Even the most tungsten-free of dim bulbs must acknowledge that characterization is a critical feature of fiction, particularly in fan fiction which is almost by definition a fundamentally character-driven genre. Apparently, however, not everyone has been informed that inherent in the term "characterization" is the notion that a character ought to bear some sort of resemblance to his pre-established representation. There is no better example of this common lack of awareness than the appalling prevalence of what shall henceforth be known as the Cult of the Pallid Hunter.
The Cult of the Pallid Hunter is widespread and pervasive, manifesting everywhere from Young Hercules to slash. Why anyone would mutilate and mangle their favorite character into an unrecognizable, wimpy husk remains one of the great mysteries of the ages and yet the stories continue to pour forth in shocking abundance, depicting Iolaus as a needy, skulking, self-effacing creature who would be hesitant to take a piss in the woods without first asking Hercules for his advice or, even worse, permission.
My question is: What show are these people watching?