Shipping - Evidence or Imagination?

Over in the Doctor Who thread, some of the things deathpigeon said about shipping got me thinking about my thoughts on shipping. It turned into a longer post than I intended, so I thought I'd start a new thread instead.

Here's what deathpigeon said:

I've never understood that. Now, I'm not arguing with you, just expressing my views on the subject. When I ship someone, it's always in the context of "I think their personalities match well. They'd make a neat couple." I don't ever feel the need to back it up with "evidence" to prove that it could (or did} happen. If I ship them, I ship them. So there. I'm never (well, hardly ever) offended that people dare ship someone else or upset that they don't agree with my ship.

To be fair, pretty much all of my ships are non-canon and definitely do not actually happen, which might be the reason for my attitude towards them.

Basically, I don't see ships - I imagine them. There's a difference.

For example, my preferred ship for Star Trek Enterprise is Trip/Hoshi, even though nothing happens onscreen to support it. Trip/T'Pol is canon because it actually sort of happens. Now some people (like you, deathpigeon, from what I gather) might feel they have to justify their ship and come up with "evidence" to support it. Or they might come up with a story about how Trip/Hoshi secretly did happen. Now, if the "evidence" in question is just seeing the potential for a ship - as in, evidence that their personalities do indeed complement one another - that's one thing. But if a person is trying to prove that it is an established fact, that's where I begin to be confused.

I've never felt the need to do that. I don't care if a ship happened or didn't happen, just that I want it to happen or think it should have. My usual solution is to imagine an AU where it did happen, rather than doing the mental gymnastics required to fit it in to canon. Could anyone who does that sort of searching for evidence explain why they feel the need to do so? Or exactly what sort of "evidence" you feel the need to find?

That's also probably why I actually find it quite irritating when someone insists that a ship is "canon" when I disagree. Especially when they insist that there's absolutely no way they're wrong, no ambiguity whatsoever, and that I'm an idiot for not "seeing" it. I guess it's because I'm inclined to view it as something I wish would happen and not as something going on behind the scenes.

Does anyone else have similar thoughts? Or different thoughts? I'm curious what others think and if anyone else thinks like me.

edited 25th Sep '12 3:44:07 PM by resetlocksley

I'm with deathpigeon here. If it's within a fandom, I want to be able to "prove" that my ships can actually happen. I tend to almost always go with the Official Couple when shipping as that's what the writer intended as the love interest.

edited 25th Sep '12 12:08:10 PM by phoenixdaughterAM

That's another thing I do differently. I don't give a darn what the writer intended if I think a different couple is better.

Interesting that you would say "can" happen. To me, there's a difference between thinking, "X and Y could be a couple because of this" and "This proves that X and Y are a couple."

So, in terms of "proof", what kind of things do you look for? And are you merely trying to explain why you ship them, or looking for evidence of an actual relationship that you want to believe has already started?

Even I have reasons for my ships. But I don't seek to prove that they are already a thing.

edited 25th Sep '12 3:44:37 PM by resetlocksley

What about cross-work shipping? Like Mario x Zelda?

edited 25th Sep '12 3:45:25 PM by DrunkGirlfriend

I would simply consider that a subtype of non-canon ships.

But how would you find evidence for its possibility?

For it's possibility? I guess you'd have to go back to things they have in common, qualities and values they share, and stuff like that.

What's the point? If it isn't in the work, it doesn't happen.

So what if it didn't happen? That doesn't mean I can't want it to happen. That doesn't mean it couldn't have happened. That doesn't mean it shouldn't happen.

But why would you care?

B-But... MY OTP!!!!! ~cries~

...Because it's important to me. Because I care about the characters. Because I can care about things that never happen. Because I can always write a fanfic where it does happen.

But they're only pretend people.

I don't really think shipping should be "important" to anyone. xD

So? That doesn't mean I can't care about them. That doesn't mean they aren't people to me.

Why not?

edited 26th Sep '12 4:32:17 AM by deathpigeon

That is what I don't get.

It should mean they aren't people to you. They aren't real.

edited 26th Sep '12 4:32:02 AM by InverurieJones

Whether or not they are real has no bearing on whether or not they are people or whether or not I can care.

@deathpigeon

Because I find it kinda ridiculous. I mean, they aren't real. It's cool if you find pairings cute or something, but actually important? Uh... XD

I don't care if it's ridiculous or not.

I mean, you aren't one of those people who when someone else says: "I think A and B are really cute together!" try to correct them with: "NO, A AND C HAVE MUCH BETTER CHEMISTRY!" or something, right? XD

...No. I care about my ships, but that doesn't mean I'll force them on others. I will argue for them, if it is right for the situation, and quite passionately, at that but never force them on others.

Tell me some of your favourite ships, then!

Sexy/Doctor/Master. Rarity/Spike. Kim/Jacqueline. And others I can't remember right now because it's nearly morning and I haven't slept at all, yet.

Real or not, people still become emotionally invested in the characters they're reading about/watching. For some people, that extends to the characters' romantic relationships. For others, it doesn't. There's nothing wrong with either of those viewpoints.

I'm guessing you're not a huge fan of fanfiction, are you? A huge percentage of fanfiction is about things that aren't in the work, things that "don't happen." But the fanfic writers imagine that they could. A lot of fanfic is based on "What If?" scenarios.

Not sure how anything fictional should be really "important" to anyone though.