Shipping Poll

[dangermousie]

I wanted to do a shipping poll about shipping attitudes in general. As in romantic, relationshippy stuff, not the friendly guys at UPS.



[Poll #549962]

Comments

[meyerlemon.livejournal.com]

I thought you were asking about USPS vs. UPS vs. FedEx Ground.

(Well, until I saw the poll.)

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

ROFL!

Yes, I prefer my boxes brown as opposed to white with blue borders. I am VERY particular.

[meyerlemon.livejournal.com]

You never know! And I was totally going to be like "Well, surprisingly, FedEx Ground is often your best choice, because--"

Alas.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Well, I think the superiority of donkey post is so evident that there is no point in conducting such a poll.

[dreamybritactor.livejournal.com]

Are you generally a shipper?

Why are you doing a poll about naval vessels?
1 (25.0%)

~~I couldn't resist, mate! LOL!!!!

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

ROFL. I knew it :)

[thelana.livejournal.com]

I like avoid the really popular ships. For once, the more people the more crazies they attract. Second, the more popular, the more hype from the fellow fans and the less likely that the ship actually lives up to the hype around it. Yes I know that might be unfair to the ship, but it's something that deeply clouds my enjoyment of something. I could like a ship, but jump ship as soon as it gets too popular because I just feel like screaming "Yes, I like it, too. But it is not THAT mindblowing, get over it.".

I kinda like my ships to be rooted in reality. In fact, I really, really like already established couples rather than couples who are only starting their process of getting together. Either way, I'd like some foundation to be there, I could never ship something that is based almost entirely on imagination. It just seems like too much work to for example ship people who haven't even met (like from different shows even!).

So, my prefered couple is canon but hopelessly unpopular (or at least second or lower in line of popular) in the fandom. Yes, it does have its downsides because it means that there usually isn't much fic, but oh well. It's not like I read a lot of fic. It usually also means that their chances of getting a happy ending are rather low, but that's usually not my priority anyway.

It helps that when I do ship talking/defending, I LOVE to play devil's advocate and get people riled up. To me that's much more fun than waxing poetically about the wonders of your ship.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Oooohh...devil's advocate. *hides horns*

I could only do it about ships I didn't care about, and even then I won't because I like people being happy in their ships whatever they are, as long as they don't start bugging me to change my opinions.

[thelana.livejournal.com]

I dunno. For me it's more about trying to remind me people to never talk in absolutes. Like "Nobody could ever like pairing or character X. Character X never liked character Y. Character X is the only significant relationship in Character Y's life.". Things like that bug me.

I don't want to take anybody else's pairing away, it just annoys me when they act like it's the only and one and ultimate one. They should remember that there are other people out there as well.

And usually, I just really like them (those pairings). It's just coincidence that I get drawn to the move obscure ones. As I said, I often like established relatinships over newly developing ones, something that isn't too popular with most other viewers. It's just nicer for me to know that the characters are already at a point where they cared enough for each other to enter a relationship, even if they have problems. In my mind that is much better and more interesting than watching them work themselves through the same old, same old stages of romance, usually going through long periods of unfinedness (which just invites shipper definition wars). Besides, very few tv shows (and I'm mainly thinking of longer ongoing tv shows) do horribly in the transition from courting to established relationship. They spend so much time getting there, once they *are* there they no longer know how to write the characters.

That's why to me it's more interesting to watch characters who are already together and root for them to make it work.

[wasabi-girl1.livejournal.com]

I usually like all ships, seriously, even in the same show. Take for example the anime Card Captor Sakura. Seriously, everyone swings every which way in that show, and due to that, I have so many favourite pairings. But I don't act steadfast on my shipping and fight with others, I just have too much other important stuff to do. :P

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

See, I can't ship a person with more than one other person at a time. It feels weird.

[thelana.livejournal.com]

I'd have the hardest time with that. Especially when it's still in the open which ship will prevail, I could never decide for just one. But then again, as we talked before, I'm a "moments" person. And usually all ships have their moments. So having more ships is like twice the same amount of good moments.

And it's also like betting your money on more than one horse. Higher chance that at least one of them will work out. And if you are drawn to non mainstream couples, that kind of thing can be important.

But there are usually some pairings per show I just can't stand and avoid at all costs, too.

[plazmah.livejournal.com]

I have no problem with doing it, and I think it stems from the fact that sometimes the determining factor in my ship preference is not the chemistry between two people, but the awesomeness of one particular character and how they deserve someone to be with... and there be many to choose from. This is the case for me and CSI: I totally ship Sara/Greg as well as Sara/Grissom, all because I love Sara's character so much.

Then in Harry Potter, I ship(ped) Harry/Luna because Luna was so great. But I still ship Ron/Hermione and not Ron/Luna, because I feel like the canon there is obvious... *runs away from potentially crazy HP fen*

[wasabi-girl1.livejournal.com]

See, sometimes I find it weird myself, but then I just want everyone to get what they want! ;)

[elvensapphire.livejournal.com]

Hee. On the "I like my ships..." I checked half of those boxes, because it all depends on who it is we're talking about, and in what fandom. *giggles*

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Heeeee.

[danceswithwords.livejournal.com]

I'm generally a shipper in that I like the possibility of romantic connection between characters if I feel there's some spark there, but I don't necessarily expect it to actually happen on the show, and I don't froth at the mouth if the writers don't give me my personal happy ending. In other words, I'm an extraordinarily lame shipper, since I'm really disgustingly mellow about it.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

See, I am an obsessive. If I ship at all, I will really be into it. It's not generally true (e.g. with K/L, I am a shipper but if they never get together, whatever), but once I've decided the ship is OTP...woe is me.

[lesbiassparrow.livejournal.com]

Though I think I probably go for canon I don't really mind all too much as long as the couple actually has some interaction. Though to be honest I 'll probably read anything and any pairing (with a few exceptions for squicks) if I think it's well-written.

Shipping wars always depress me because they seem to inevitably end up with people saying the other side are obviously one or all of these:
1. 12 years old
2. stupid and mentally 12 years old
3. creepy
4. fat and unattractive and 12 years old
5. squeeing fangirls who are probably 12 years old or if they are not write like they are.
6. heterophobic/homophobic/incestphobic/somethingorotherphobic
7 delusional, jealous and 12 years old

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

I am noticing a 12-year old motif here :)

It always strikes me as odd that some people feel compelled to prove that their ship is the bestest. So, you ship X/Y, bully for you! But I don't see why you care if someone else ships X/Z instead.

I noticed this happen most with canons in flux (i.e. where shipper fate is yet unknown) and I think then people are trying to reassure themselves that their desired ship is the most viable one and will happen.

[lesbiassparrow.livejournal.com]

I swear the 12 year old thing is a running theme in attacks on other shippers - I've been in groups that have both been the recipients and done the accusing and it still strikes me as the dumbest argument ever. I think it's made because in some people's minds this automatically renders the other side's opinions null and void in a 'they're only 12 what do they know' way. How making that charge proves your maturity I have no idea.

And I don't get the opposing shipper wars either. It even happens with people who surely know their ship is never going to happen so it seems strangely detached from anything to do with the show. What I find funny is that shipper wars still rage in the Buffyverse and that show has been over forever. There's always the 'my 'ship should totally have happened because it would have been better for the character' argument which can run even when canon is long over.

[raisintorte.livejournal.com]

This is a fun poll. I love crazy shippers/slashers going at each other, especially on the Sam/Jack list. Just fun to watch. :-)

I'm a very open minded ship/slasher. In BSG/SGA/SG1 I have read and for the most part enjoyed every pairing but one. I even read the obscure minor guy/minor guy slash. But for some reason there is just one pair (and this pair even has some canon subtext) that I cannot read at all. I can ship/slash both parties with other people, I can throw them in a 3 or 4 some together but can't stand reading about just the two of them.

BUT even not liking this one pair I would never fight with someone over why I don't like it. Everyone wants to pair them off? Have fun, just don't yell at me and try and make me like it because I don't. :-)

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

What's the ship? :)

[raisintorte.livejournal.com]

I don't like Daniel/Jack. I like Daniel/Jack/Sam, i've liked Daniel/Jack/Paul Davis, I like Daniel/Sam, Sam/Jack, Daniel/Jonas, Jack/Jonas, I'm pretty much an equal opportunity shipper. I just don't like Jack/Daniel as a twosome. And I have no reasoning behind the dislike.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

There never needs to be a reasoning behind a ship dislike :)

[raisintorte.livejournal.com]

I know. It's just odd for me. Generally when I don't like a pair or I don't enjoy reading them the reason is I could never actually seem them together in canon, and while I ship anyone I tend to like pairs that have at least met in canon and could possibly some day be paired.

I *love* your Kaylee icon. Love it.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

It was made by green_queen

[equustel.livejournal.com]

And here's where I confess that I'm a canon Nazi. It may sound narrow-minded or unimaginitive, but I just can't get into a ship if it isn't a part of the show in the first place - because the show/film/what-have-you comes first for me, fanfic a very distant second.

That's why when I do read/write fanfic, it tends to be gen, with bits of a canon ship thrown in (because it's integrated into the show in the first place, and I try to stay as true to the canon as possible). There's also the fact that I don't think character relationships have to be romantic to be interesting - in most cases, the most interesting ones aren't at all, and forcing the romantic aspect often cheapens what's there (this is my problem with the advent of, say, Anakin/Obi-Wan lately). Even Mulder and Scully in their platonic years fascinate me more than when the show finally had them involved.

Anyway, just another two cents for the pile. :)

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Glad to see another canon nazi. For me, if the show/book/movie says this is the way it is, then that's how it is.

[thelana.livejournal.com]

I like to get canon obsessive. Like take the show, the books, the comics, it's all canon to me. When I really love a show I can get very obsessive about collecting every piece of canon. And then try to see how it can worked into the "main" canon. Which is often quite a headache inducing ordeal since especially spin off books usually don't pay much attention to continuity.

For me, I like things that are canon, but I don't have to like everything that is canon. Usually I get interested into relationship that are secondary and that we therefore don't have much information on.

[plazmah.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty versatile when it comes to canon. I like some canon pairings, some non-canon pairings, some slash pairings... whatever strikes my fancy :)

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Love the icon!

[rawles.livejournal.com]

I am a canon whore, so most of my ships tend to be firmly based in the canon. Sometimes something will catch my eye and I'll be able to read fic for it or whatever without it being the ubercanon, but it's very rare that I seriously ship something that isn't there in the text. Generally, this only happens when the source material has upset me greatly in some way, and it takes more than my ship not happening to upset me.

Of course, the benchmark for my seriously shipping something is generally when I write fic about it. Now this isn't a universal indicator, in the sense that I don't actually seriously ship everything I've ever written, because I take requests and sometimes like to challenge myself or whatever.

However, if I've never written fic about it then it's a sure bet that in the grand scheme of my OTPs For Life, it's not really making the list.

As far as whether I need there to be ships on a show. Not really. I don't go into show immediately looking for people to pair off, neither does the potential for pairings at all affect my decisions to watch shows, but I generally tend to find them anyway, so I'm not sure what that means.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

if I've never written fic about it then it's a sure bet that in the grand scheme of my OTPs For Life, it's not really making the list.


For me, it depends. Sometimes the OTP is so well written in canon (J/A in Farscape) I can't imagine fanfic about it.

[rawles.livejournal.com]

Yeah, see, I tend to only write little character pieces when it comes to fanfiction, so generally it's irrelevant how well written the canon is.

I'm never really trying to "fix" things, but more to just explore how I see what is there, or maybe insert little in-between moments. So, a lot of my fanfiction is actually like meta in narrative form, really. Heh.