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Date Posted: Wednesday, September 14, 08:25:29pm
Author: Nell
Subject: You know what else this made me think about? Reuse of characters (r)
In reply to: sk 's message, "repetition" on Tuesday, September 13, 08:48:40am

Some minor character really caught fanfic writers immaginations - David Fanning is a fairly regular visitor to fic-land, and so is Rene, and Adrian and George.

But other, in my view, equally memorable minor characters or SOTW almost never make an appearence. Sparks and his gal friday Shibion? He even showed up twice (just like the Fannings) - and yet, almost nothing. And boy are they memorable! Carla? Got lots of air time for a supporting character - but, very little fic.

Instead we see the same handful of minor or supporting characters regularly pressed into plot service, almost regardless of their canon role/character.

How many crazy or evil or slutty Elenas have we seen? I can totally understand the desire to write up a triangle, of a sort, so that in an HR romance, you have a clear rival for Nikita, and yet one whose attractions pale in comparison. But Elena in canon wasn't any of those things - so why don't people take one of the other actual rivals for Michael's affections? Like Vizcano? Or Andrea? Or even poor Abby? Or Lisa Fanning herself? Or other women that Michael seemed to like and respect and make them into more serious rivals? like Terry? Or Sarah?

Why does poor Elena end up bearing the brunt of that plot wieght? Or to reverse it and give Michael and opposite number against whom to struggle, Helmut and Jurgen often show up as horrible creepy men, when while neither was perfect by any means, canon makes out as pretty solidly 'good' guys who geniunely liked Nikita and wanted, at some level, to do right by her.

I have an idea that it is because we (the big we the LFN fanfic readers) did have a strong reaction to these characters and like to see them show up in fic, but due to the heavily romance nature of a lot of the fic, they get squashed into classic romance tropes almost by accident. Because they are there, because the writers remember them well and sieze on them as the easist and clearest bodies to work with. Or at least, that's my current theory! *g*

What do you think?

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