This rewrite is one of the only ones where I would say is an outright upgrade from canon. It keeps the tone and most of the beats of the original All-Stars, but irons out the majority of the problems that plagued it. Contradictions to canon or Idiot Ball moments are either removed, or justified so that the events from All-Stars they keep flow more naturally. Why Heather didn't just take the Immunity Idol with her? Because it was too big for her to hide in her pockets. How did Mal get Courtney's chart? By bumping into her and pickpocketing it. Why didn't Courtney eat her Sundae despite having a strong stomach in World Tour? Simply addressing that bird vomit combined with her lactose intolerance makes it a line she won't cross.
The changes that it does make are also really great. The fanfic's interpretation has turned Duncan and Gwen's relationship from one of the worst ones in canon to arguably better than any of the canon ones. They still have problems with neglecting the other's feelings like in canon, but here, there's an active effort on both of their ends to try and fix it. On seperate occasions, both Duncan and Gwen help the other out through their insecurities, turning what was just simple jokes in canon to genuinely strong emotional mooments. Dawn and Noah's relationship was also pretty solid. Seeing a more insecure side to Noah when he starts to develop feelings for Dawn was neat to see, and a much better way to see Noah struggling with his feelings than simply being in a lovestruck daze like in Ridonculus Race (still like Noah and Emma as a pair though). Hell, the friendship between Owen and Scott, despite seeming to come out of nowhere, the story has it make so much sense by highliginh their similarities. And of course, the characters added to the competition (Owen, Dawn, Noah, Brick, and Annie Maria) provided a ton of great moments as well.
It also helps that the fanfic expands on so much more things than the canon story did. Zoey and Gwen have a lot more moments showing their friendship than the canon season did, both of providing each other emotional support, but also just some funny moments to show the differences in their personalities (such as Gwen recounting how Zoey's too nice to even properly tell off Alejandro). And the finale actually feels like it was dramatic weight. Mal nearly killing Dawn, getting into a fight with Duncan, the removal of the reset button. It makes it feel like an actual finale.
Now for the parts that aren't so great. For starters, this story loves the lift lines. From the canon Total Drama, Western Animation/Sixteen, iCarly, and probably some others that I didn't recognize. While sometimes it works for the situation they're put in, other times it feels forced and awkward, making it feel like the authors are just taking lines for the sake of it. Also, while this didn't bother me personally, because of how closely it follows the events of canon, this means that it's very rarely a surprise for who wins and who gets eliminated. There's a couple times where it's shaken up, but few and far between, so those looking to be surprised by eliminations will likely be disappointed.
But one of the biggest issues is with Mal. While characters are less stupid about his presence, it results in there being little reason for why he stuck around so long. While they explained why Dawn didn't shout it out (distracted with her feelings for Noah, and Mal threatening Owen and Noah if she does) for others, it makes it feel pretty forced for why he didn't get the boot sooner. Gwen actually takes Duncan's advice and is more wary of Mike. Owen explicitly yells out in the boxing challenge that Mike is his friend, and that the person isn't Mike. Zoey is more suspicous of him.
Also, the authors' hatred for Cody lead to them completely derailing his character, but more detail of that is given on the entry I wrote on Dethroning Moments.
Overall though, the fanfic is a great rewrite that, while it has it's rough spots, I'm more than glad to re-read.
Fanfic A Flawed but Solid Fix Fic
This rewrite is one of the only ones where I would say is an outright upgrade from canon. It keeps the tone and most of the beats of the original All-Stars, but irons out the majority of the problems that plagued it. Contradictions to canon or Idiot Ball moments are either removed, or justified so that the events from All-Stars they keep flow more naturally. Why Heather didn't just take the Immunity Idol with her? Because it was too big for her to hide in her pockets. How did Mal get Courtney's chart? By bumping into her and pickpocketing it. Why didn't Courtney eat her Sundae despite having a strong stomach in World Tour? Simply addressing that bird vomit combined with her lactose intolerance makes it a line she won't cross.
The changes that it does make are also really great. The fanfic's interpretation has turned Duncan and Gwen's relationship from one of the worst ones in canon to arguably better than any of the canon ones. They still have problems with neglecting the other's feelings like in canon, but here, there's an active effort on both of their ends to try and fix it. On seperate occasions, both Duncan and Gwen help the other out through their insecurities, turning what was just simple jokes in canon to genuinely strong emotional mooments. Dawn and Noah's relationship was also pretty solid. Seeing a more insecure side to Noah when he starts to develop feelings for Dawn was neat to see, and a much better way to see Noah struggling with his feelings than simply being in a lovestruck daze like in Ridonculus Race (still like Noah and Emma as a pair though). Hell, the friendship between Owen and Scott, despite seeming to come out of nowhere, the story has it make so much sense by highliginh their similarities. And of course, the characters added to the competition (Owen, Dawn, Noah, Brick, and Annie Maria) provided a ton of great moments as well.
It also helps that the fanfic expands on so much more things than the canon story did. Zoey and Gwen have a lot more moments showing their friendship than the canon season did, both of providing each other emotional support, but also just some funny moments to show the differences in their personalities (such as Gwen recounting how Zoey's too nice to even properly tell off Alejandro). And the finale actually feels like it was dramatic weight. Mal nearly killing Dawn, getting into a fight with Duncan, the removal of the reset button. It makes it feel like an actual finale.
Now for the parts that aren't so great. For starters, this story loves the lift lines. From the canon Total Drama, Western Animation/Sixteen, iCarly, and probably some others that I didn't recognize. While sometimes it works for the situation they're put in, other times it feels forced and awkward, making it feel like the authors are just taking lines for the sake of it. Also, while this didn't bother me personally, because of how closely it follows the events of canon, this means that it's very rarely a surprise for who wins and who gets eliminated. There's a couple times where it's shaken up, but few and far between, so those looking to be surprised by eliminations will likely be disappointed.
But one of the biggest issues is with Mal. While characters are less stupid about his presence, it results in there being little reason for why he stuck around so long. While they explained why Dawn didn't shout it out (distracted with her feelings for Noah, and Mal threatening Owen and Noah if she does) for others, it makes it feel pretty forced for why he didn't get the boot sooner. Gwen actually takes Duncan's advice and is more wary of Mike. Owen explicitly yells out in the boxing challenge that Mike is his friend, and that the person isn't Mike. Zoey is more suspicous of him.
Also, the authors' hatred for Cody lead to them completely derailing his character, but more detail of that is given on the entry I wrote on Dethroning Moments.
Overall though, the fanfic is a great rewrite that, while it has it's rough spots, I'm more than glad to re-read.