Trollfics vs. Terrible Fanfiction

Ahoy hoy.

So, I've been thinking: has anyone here read a story lately that they had to invoke Poe's Law on? I've been reading through some of the more infamous ones (like Naruto Vengeance Revalations) and I'm convinced that one can't be real, because there's several subtle shout-outs to other media.

Then there's this gem: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/7232788/1/bBATMAN_b_bVS_b_bTWILIGHT_b

So, how's it? Which stories you've read do you think are genuinely terrible as opposed to deliberately so?

At a certain level of terribleness the point becomes moot. My Immortal, for instance—I really couldn't care less if whoever-she-is is actually just a terrible writer, or is trolling the entire universe. It's equally hilarious either way.

This.

A trollfic that isn't funny is just terrible fanfiction.

edited 17th Nov '11 6:41:35 PM by annebeeche

My comment about the failure of stealth parody should make this clear.

I'm almost tempted to write a few of them, after reading Thirty H's and some genuinely funny crack fics. Then again, acting stupid is far harder than actually being stupid in the first place.

There's a third choice, between intentionally bad and unintentionally bad—the author can be unintentionally bad at being intentionally bad. For instance, I've heard there was a writer who read a bunch of unintentionally bad fanfics in which Harry Potter spoke in American slang. He attempted to parody this with a story called "Harry Potter is a Wigger," but the story itself was quite badly written. (Then again, I've never been able to track down this story, so I can't prove it actually exists.)

Whether it exists or not, that's an excellent point - attempts at being bad can be genuinely bad.

I've had the exact same thought, too; I think that someone who can make a classic trollfic (in the vein of My Immortal, not Agony In Pink) should be recognized for their talents.

Well the writer got one thing right at least:

Don't forget using his leg muscles to run away. Normal people don't use them.

I have to say, that's rather hysterical.

This just reminded me of Wesker The Idiot. Back in the day, funniest thing ever. Nowadays, I know about Terry Pratchett, so it's not quite as funny.

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/2309597/1/Wesker_the_Idiot

edited 18th Nov '11 2:53:42 PM by JoaquinDawley

Even genuinely Horrible things have their merits, in terms of potential mockery. But the line is indeed thin and pale.

That Shinji's Nightmare Cataclysm... someone should link the MST'ing that got done of it, because it's seriously funny. Almost prevents reading the story being a complete waste of time.

And some words of wisdom: "paintings are dumb because theres no speesh bubbles"

I dunno. What would this count as?

Funny. =P

I think these days, we get a lot of copycat killers. I mean that in the sense that a few fanfics (which may or may not be legit in their awful nature/sheer WTF-ness) became legendary and people want that same notoriety. Fame < Infamy.

edited 18th Nov '11 9:37:35 PM by PancakeMckennz

Egads! Why? http://www.fanfiction.net/s/7641809/1/The_Pony_Versus_England_Case

I haven't read the whole thing but I can't see how My Immortal could possibly be real. Beyond simply being crappy it seems too on-the-nose somehow, like somebody went down a checklist of stuff that usually goes wrong and hit all of it. The Eye Of Argon is a more convincing kind of suck, where it manages to get some stuff slightly right but then makes mistakes that never would have occurred to a normal person (this is the challenge of doing stupid on purpose).

Poe's Law really expresses why trollfics seem counterproductive to me.

I think trollfics are exceedingly hard to write well. It's not just about terrible spelling, 30-Sue Pileup, and a Crack Fic plot, which is what all the imitators seem to take away from My Immortal and Half Life Full Life Consequences.

I myself personally find the work of Sue Mary(who legitimately is a troll) to be much more on the So Bad Its Horrible side then So Bad, It's Good.