FanPreferredCouple Cleanup

So here is something I have a question about. It's in regards to a potential entry for The Sandman (2022). Now it's not really focused on romance but Dream has two loves in the past and one of them Nada is very much presented as his love in the present. Now that is not the most popular ship the most popular ship is Dream with Hob Gadling. Am I good to attempt a entry for Dream/Gadling?

YMMV.Cult Of The Lamb

• Fan-Preferred Couple: An odd example in that the Lamb can marry anyone they please, but a lot of players enjoy immediately marrying Narinder, The One Who Waits as soon as the option comes up. Mostly because of the comedic value of taking down a God, dragging him to your level and making him your spouse just like that, but a lot of fans seem to genuinely like interpreting him as a tsundere who hates how fond he gets of the Lamb's eternal company.

there's no mention of a creator prefered couple.

Yeah cut. The "marry anyone they please" means you can choose and by that logic almost everything is creator preferred. Plus the listed pairing is a romance option so canon and Creator preferred.

Edited by Bullman on Dec 29th 2022 at 11:36:18 AM

Any opinions on my above question in regards to the Sandman 2022? Also a while back I removed this from YMMV.Mad Max Fury Road:

• Fan-Preferred Couple: Max/Furiosa, to the surprise of absolutely no one. Notable in that there are really no pairings to rival this one, at least not involving the same two characters. The only other viable candidates for Max are the wives (which would be all sorts of inappropriate) or someone else in Furiosa's tribe (hampered by limited interaction), so he ends up developing the most chemistry with her. But since he decides to keep Wandering the Earth rather than settle down, the only other avenue for seeing them together is fanfic.

Now while this is indeed the most popular ship, the entry itself pretty much admits that there is no canon competition. However I have been thinking, wasn't Mad married and isn't his wife a pretty big The Lost Lenore? Or is that never referenced in this movie? Because if it is I am good with calling that creator preferred.

Edited by Bullman on Dec 30th 2022 at 9:24:11 AM

Bull, I think you're fine to go forward with the entry for The Sandman.

Having only seen Fury Road, I don't think it's a canon reboot—at least not a full one—and if it does ignore the events of other movies, I'm really not sure as to proclaim which ones it does ignore and which ones it doesn't.

It would be more accurate to call it a soft reboot - there's brief flashbacks that indicate Max had a family at one point and something happened to them, but that's it; as someone who watched this movie but not the previous ones I personally couldn't tell you any more.

I don't believe there is a creator-preferred couple.

Teen Titans (2003)

• Fan-Preferred Couple: The three biggest pairings in the fandom in approximate order of popularity are Robin/Starfire, Beast Boy/Raven, and Robin/Raven. They have had varying degrees of staying power in the fandom over the years, but the latter two have both been recognized as fan-favorite Fanon pairings and have influenced other DC properties (including the quasi-spinoff Teen Titans Go! and the completely separate animated movie universe).
  • Hardly anyone even knows that Cyborg actually has a girlfriend, Sarah Simms. A lot of fans ship him with Bumblebee as a result of their interactions in the H.I.V.E. Academy arc.

As stated above, Robin/Starfire is canon; they have plenty of shipTease in the series and a Big Damn Kiss in the movie. Robin/Raven is less popular (far less fanfics on AO 3) and Raven doesn't any official love interrest. Beast Boy/Raven..., not sure. Technically Beast Boy gets teased with Terra but it ends badly and he is told to move on.

Maybe Cyborg/Bumblebee could count. Sarah Simms is only introduced in the continuation comic so it's true that many fans don't know about her existence.

Edited by Silverblade2 on Jan 6th 2023 at 12:41:56 PM

Robin/Starfire and Robin/Raven are definite cuts. It's been years since I have seen the show but would you guys call Beast Boy/Terra creator preferred because I am unsure. I mean Beast Boy/Raven also have an entry at FanPreferredCouple.Western Animation I believe. Cyborg/Bumblebee I am fine with.

Edited by Bullman on Jan 6th 2023 at 6:11:49 AM

Beast Boy/Raven is probably valid.

I'm very certain I read somewhere from the writers that those two were intended to be completely platonic Like Brother and Sister, but were overwhelmingly seen as a couple in spite of that. Whereas Beast Boy and Terra, although their romance didn't end on a good note, were at least deliberately written to be attracted to each other.

If my memory is correct, I'm leaning on saying Beast Boy/Raven is valid, though I don't know about Cyborg/Bumblebee.

Haven't ever read/watched this, but the YMMV page for BIONICLE has an extended Fan-Preferred Couple section where it says at the beginning that there are no canon couples in the work, which would make them all misuses.

Cut them all in that case.

I agree those are misuse because that's part of Fan-Preferred Couple.

So a while ago, I went through YMMV.Akame Ga Kill to delete any misued FPC entries/potholes, and all that was left is this entry that does seem to count, but would probably need rewriting.

• Fan-Preferred Couple: While the canon relationship between Tatsumi and Mine has plenty of supporters, chances are you will find a group fans that prefer different pairings, most notably Tatsumi/Akame and Tatsumi/Esdeath, instead.

The thing is Tatsumi/Esdeath did have more results on AO3 than Tatsumi/Mine, but it was still only like 25 fics, showing the series isn't really popular there. I can probably write an entry for Tatsumi/Esdeath, but would anyone else be acquainted with this series be familiar with its shipping fandom to confirm if it's his post popular ship?

Ys has this:

• Fan-Preferred Couple: There have been plenty of Ship Teasing between Adol and the heroine of each game, even though there's never any confirmation. Nevertheless, fans have wanted to see Adol catered towards specific girls.
  • Feena remains a popular choice in spite of the minimal screen-time she had with Adol. It helps that Falcom has confirmed Adol shared an anonymous connection with her throughout Ys I and Ys II, and their last moments together could be interpreted as romantic. Fans still hold out for Feena's reappearance in future installments, no matter how unlikely that may be.
  • Elena Stoddart from Ys III has the slight lead over the other "love interests" in terms of general popularity, largely due to her appearance in Spin-Off Massively Multiplayer Crossover Ys vs. Trails in the Sky: Alternative Saga (where she Took a Level in Badass), which a lot of fans want to see explored more rather than as proof-of-concept (Ys vs. being non-canon). Moreover, the popularity of Ys: The Oath in Felghana in the West undoubtedly helped garner her reception.
  • After Ys: Memories of Celceta was released, Karna won a lot of character polls online, beating out several other female characters throughout Ys, but only lost occasionally to Dogi. Not only is she the one who has gotten the most physical with him (via a Glomp), but Karna's essentially the Action Girl Distaff Counterpart to Adol.
  • Although the titular Dana in Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana is the Deuteragonist of the game, Laxia von Roswell is the one whom most players desire to see paired with Adol, thanks to how alike she and Adol are in certain aspects, obvious Belligerent Sexual Tension for Adol before she becomes a Defrosting Ice Queen (thanks in part to Adol himself), and their ways of life complementing one another (Adol is an adventurer and traveling wanderer who loves exploring ancient ruins and Laxia is an aspiring Adventurer Archaeologist), with some players wishing she would make an appearance in future games.

I should mention that Adol never actually settles down with a wife, and due to way the story is told (being a currently (at least out of universe) incomplete recollection of his tales from a unknown third party), it never made clear if he did settle down. Any other thoughts?

I feel those aren't examples because, as you stated, he never settled down with someone.

Cut for the reasons you have stated.

Removed and cited this thread.

I'm torn on Cyborg/Bumblebee. On one hand it was a pairing the creators explicitly said they were trying to avoid (because of the Unfortunate Implications of pairing the only two black people together). But I don't think Cyborg's girlfriend is canon to the show. I can't remember her ever being mentioned in the show itself.

I don't think a lot of fans ever take stock of continuation comics. Also, wasn't Cyborg/Jinx popular for a while?

Edited by PhiSat on Jan 11th 2023 at 10:21:20 AM

Yeah, I noticed too, it was only in sequel comics. Though I think he was sort of with Jinx for a bit (which was also decently popular, though him and Bumblebee even more so) and there was like. I think a past life version of his gf from the comics or something like that? Though they don’t explicitly date, it is tease.

This tree from YMMV.The Walking Dead 2010 seems like a mess:

• Fan-Preferred Couple:
  • Rick and Michonne became a popular pairing after Season 3's "Clear" and the most popular choice for Rick's Second Love after Andrea's Death by Adaptation. Many were unhappy to see Jessie fill the role instead, especially because they're a borderline Unequal Pairing. Thankfully, Jessie turns out to be a Romantic False Lead, with Rick and Michonne finally becoming an official Battle Couple after the time skip. It's Lampshaded in "Knots Untie", as when Rick explains his new relationship to Carl, insisting it's "different" when Carl seems a bit apprehensive at first, though he, like many fans, approves of it.
  • Daryl is the closest the show has to a Launcher of a Thousand Ships. Aside from Rick Grimes, his most popular ships are:
    • Beth Greene. While her death took this off the canonical table, it has not stopped them from becoming the most popular heterosexual Daryl Dixon ship on AO3 with the most fanworks featuring them. The popularity skyrocketed after the events of Season 4 brought them together, with fanworks and fanart flooding the internet before and after Beth's death.
    • Carol Peletier. She and Daryl are a popular choice due to their copious amounts of Ship Tease and the overall ambiguous state of their relationship — they're obviously very close, and it's generally agreed that their interactions are great whether they're intended romantically or not. It's surely helped by the fact that Daryl and Carol are the show's two main Breakout Characters each in their own right, and a lot of fans would like their relationship to develop further just to see them get even more focus. They ultimately end the show as Platonic Life-Partners, and Carol calls Daryl her best friend.
    • Connie. Introduced in Season 9, her genuine kindness towards practically everyone and her skills as a deaf survivor have made her an Ensemble Dark Horse. Her cute scenes with Daryl took the fandom by storm, especially with Daryl taking the time to learn ASL for her. As of this writing, she is the only other surviving female character to have significant traction with the fans as a potential pairing for Daryl. Talking Dead ran a poll asking the audience whether they believed there was something between Daryl and Connie and 87% said they did. They don't get together by the end of the show either.
  • Thanks to some Les Yay, the two becoming very close, and Tara's occasional leering at Rosita (which is noted by an amused Abraham), Tara and Rosita are a popular choice to be put together. After Denise's death, Abraham dumping Rosita and the fact that Rosita's new flame Spencer is killed by Negan shortly after, some hoped that the two would get together. This sadly will never happen as Tara gets killed by the Whisperers.
  • Speaking of Rosita, many fans dislike her pairing with Gabriel feeling they have no chemistry and their romance was an Ass Pull out of nowhere. However, her tender scenes with Siddiq in Season 10 had made some fans wish Rosita and Siddiq survived the end of the series to raise their daughter together as a romantic couple despite only being Friends with Benefits during a Time Skip.

The first one seems canon, I personally don't remember a love interest for Daryl, and for Rosita the most popular ship does seem to be Tara the other one doesn't but I had stopped watching at that point.

Edited by Bullman on Jan 11th 2023 at 6:22:13 AM

• Rick and Michonne: Yeah, if they got together then it's canon and should be cut.
• Daryl and Beth: From her wiki page she apparently had a boyfriend (Jimmy) for a while in season 2, and another boyfriend (Zach) in season 6. If Her and Daryl are more popular than either of those ships, I think this might count.
• Daryl and Carol: Apparently Carol dated Tobin in season 6, but they broke up. If her and Daryl is more popular than her and Tobin, I think this counts.
• Daryl and Connie: Can't find anything about Connie having a canon love interest, so cut.
• Rosita: At least on AO 3, Rosita/Tara is significantly more popular than Rosita/Siddiq (and the two were together for a while and had a kid), so cut the latter.

I haven't been watching Walking Dead. I'm only at the beginning of Season 3 right now.

As for Teen Titans Go!, the trajectory Bull was suggesting seems appropriate.

Oh yeah Daryl with Beth and Carol is indeed more popular than those.

My second question is if we should make a entry for Daryl and Rick, while Daryl is shipped with everyone it is easily Rick's most popular from what I can tell.

If someone feels up to writing it, then sure; I don't feel like I'm familiar enough with it to write it myself, but it would count.