Mini-rant, fandom specific

[dreamflower]

One thing I have always appreciated about the Tolkien fandom is that it has always seemed to eschew "cutesy smooshed together pairing names" such as one often sees for example, in HP and other fandoms. If you LIKE these, just pass on by and attribute this rant to cold-induced curmudgeonliness...



I'm not a 'shipper, but I do read summaries and headers, and pairings in our fandom have always been described as NameA/NameB or with initials, A/B, not with smooshed names!

Right after TH:AU came out I started seeing "Thilbo" and "Bagginshield" in summaries. Or even worse, "Thilbo Bagginshield". If this wasn't shuddersome enough, just today I have seen "Merpin" and "Fram"! OUCH!! It's not a matter of what I think of the pairs in question--but it's just insulting to the characters to do that to their names.

What's the matter with names or initials? Why these ridiculous words that sound flat out silly?


Move along now, it's just a cranky old lady complaining...

Comments

[mrowe.livejournal.com]

Let's hear it for cranky old ladies then!

"Thilbo" makes me gag, Merpin looks like they misspelled 'merkin'; I'd have been very disappointed in clicking on something marked Fram to find out it wasn't about the slayer of Scatha the Dragon...

[dreamflower]

LOL!

Thilbo makes me gag, too!

[ramblin_rosie]

*iz a grumpy old lady too*
In newer fandoms where the portmanteau ship names become fandom shorthand in a hurry, sure, fine. In an established fandom? Especially where there are so many names, so many of which are similar, and where the portmanteau might turn out to be an *actual word in another language*?! OY.
Annnnnd I'll spare you the rant about shipping characters from TH:AUJ in the first place, as I suspect you already know how that one goes...

[dreamflower]

A-yup!

Of course, I knew what would happen with TH, since it's either that or OFCs.

But I am afraid that my preference for plain old gen friendship fic would spawn a whole 'nother rant. WHY does EVERYONE HAVE to be paired up?

[aspenjules.livejournal.com]

Let me just say Ugh! I agree!

[dreamflower]

Thanks! It's quite annoying.

[frodosweetstuff.livejournal.com]

I didn't understand the need for those abbreviations either (and really, there is no way you can do that with Frodo/Sam and get something that doesn't sound terribly stupid: Fram? Sodo? Samdo? Frodam?). However, the reason why you have these amalgations is that on some websites (Tumblr for instance, but others, too) you cannot do searches that feature a "/". So if you want people to find your posts or if you want to find posts, you have to use a search word without a slash. In the Yaoi fandoms they often use x (Frodo x Sam) but that doesn't seem to have taken hold elsewhere (and the x does make me think too much of biology and breeding and mpreg... )

Hope that helps explain it a bit!

[dreamflower]

Well, I didn't know that about Tumblr, because I don't do it.

But still, those mash-up names are dumb.

[arwen75]

I would have to say urgh as well. I hate the combining of names in other fandoms and would prefer very much it to stay out of the Tolkien fandom thank you.

[dreamflower]

Some fandoms have a tradition of them, like Harry Potter or some of the anime ones (which I am unfamiliar with, but know they do that). The Tolkien fandom does not.

[pandemonium-213.livejournal.com]

Oh, you ol' curmudgeon, you! :^D

It's one thing to use the goofy neologisms in casual conversation, but in story summaries? OK, "Bagginshield" is perhaps moderately apparent as to the composition of the pairing in question, but Merpin and Fram? What the...?

This could also cause me to launch into a tangent about vague story summaries, too. dawn_felagund and I have lamented that a single sentence does not make for an effective summary (I am sooo tempted to spout off about this on the SWG Yahoo group at some point). Add to that an obscure fannish shorthand for a pairing, and well, the author is not doing herself (or himself) any favors.

Heh. I think I've added yet more curmudgeonliness to the topic!

[dreamflower]

I posted a more general rant on summaries over at fanficrants:

http://fanficrants.livejournal.com/11300525.html

[shirebound]

I agree completely! And when I hear them in real life ("Brangelina" comes to mind) I cringe.

[dreamflower]

I know! It sounds even goofier in RL!

[fantasy-fan.livejournal.com]

The only time I have ever found ship names even remotely amusing was in the Hunger Games fandom, where the pairing of Katniss and Peeta comes out either Katpee, or Peeniss. That was funny.

Otherwise, ugh.

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

Okay, I just choked on my coffee....

[dreamflower]

A while back I came across someone talking about the original slash pairing: Kirk/Spock. Only two ways to do a mash-up with those:

"Kock" or "Spork". LOL!

'nuff said.

[claudia603.livejournal.com]

Katpee -- THAT IS SO AWESOME!

[mews1945.livejournal.com]

Well, I have to give you that one. That made me laugh, and that's always a good thing. I like katpee myself.

[gentlehobbit.livejournal.com]

I remember that when I lived in Japan, they did that a lot for just about anything (people, items, etc.) So that seemed a natural part of their culture. It works too, with the language patterns and their syllabic-based script.

But here? I've always rolled my eyes a bit when people do it with actor pairings. The only time I've enjoyed it is in The Big Bang Theory where the use of "Shamy" had a bit of a witty connotation attached to it.

But for LotR and other fandoms? That's NOT a part of our "on-line culture" and thus comes across as horribly contrived. Not to mention unnecessary.

Grump.

[dreamflower]

No, they are definitely NOT part of LotR culture!

The thing is, though, they ALWAYS come across as "horribly contrived" because that's just what they are.

Not to mention unnecessary.

Yep.

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

Oh.my.goodness. I thought I was the only one who despised those mash-ups. I've been guilty of using "Viggogorn" on rare occasions, usually in a tongue-in-cheek way in discussions about Viggo's take on Aragorn in contrast to the book Aragorn. But I cannot stand couple names smushed together like that, either in fandom or in real life. And now TH:AUJ has spawned so.dang.much of that. *sigh* Stop, people. Just stop.

And don't get me started on other fandom slang words that make me gnash my teeth...

*stuffs my inner Old Lady Curmudgeonly back into her garret before she can get a good head of steam going*

[dreamflower]

I've used the term "Frolijah" if I am talking specifically about movie-verse Frodo. Because there is a difference between book-verse and movie-verse portrayals; but that's a different topic.

But yeah, couple names? Not that cute.

other fandom slang words that make me gnash my teeth...

Aw! Go on, let her out! You know your Inner Curmudgeon wants her say!

[melaniesuzanne.livejournal.com]

I'm good with "Monaboyd", but the examples you listed in your post made me curl my lip back with disgust. It's stupid to make the pairing read like a license plate where you have to take the time to puzzle it out.

[dreamflower]

But "Monaboyd" is LOTRPS, rather than just LotR; that's a different thing, and it doesn't bother me. (Partly because that's not my fandom.)

But Tolkien fiction fandom has never had those sorts of mash-ups before, and they really sound dumb.

[lindahoyland.livejournal.com]

Ugh is all I can say!

[dreamflower]

At least it would be too hard to come up with a mash-up for Aragorn and Arwen, Thank goodness! (Unless they used the end of the names? Oh, that's even yuckier! "Wengorn"?) Because "Arawen" or "Argorn" would just look like typos, LOL!

[lindahoyland.livejournal.com]

It's dreadful! I've heard of "Faragorn" and "Aramir" for stories about Aragorn and Faramir. I think someone applied it once to my friendship stories. Why can't people just say the names?

[dreamflower]

Laziness? Trying to be cute? Thinking it's "cool"?

And "Aramir" could be a name in Sindarin, so using it would not necessarily mean a pairing. Some people might mistake it for an OC name in the summary!

[lindahoyland.livejournal.com]

I guess a lot depends on context. On the puppy cam site I frequent we have "chuppies" - Chaos' pups, "Muppies"- Moxie's pups and "Nuppies" -Noel's pups, but there is world of difference between cute pups and Tolkien's serious characters.

"Aramir" would indeed make a name and I fear if I used terms like that folks would think I was into slash. I admit I use A/A for Aragorn and Arwen.

I'm just writing a Hobbit ficlet believe it or not!

[dreamflower]

"I'm just writing a Hobbit ficlet believe it or not!"

*grin*

[claudia603.livejournal.com]

FUlly agreed! It just sounds silly!

[dreamflower]

It really does!

[mumstheword54.livejournal.com]

Gag a maggot!


Curmudgeons, unite!

[dreamflower]

Yep! It wouldn't be so bad if most of them didn't sound so dreadful!

[mews1945.livejournal.com]

*applauds*

[dreamflower]

*takes a bow*