User blog comment:Wilfredcthulu/Does anyone else hate Ed, Edd n Eddy fanfiction?/@comment-224939-20141109074627/@comment-1915803-20141109155940

I agree with this assessment. This is something that I've been outspoken about in the past, but it's nice to have all of these thoughts summarized into one post. Thanks.

For me, my biggest pet peeve with fanfiction is that almost none of it stays in canon with the show as it exists. That really gets under my skin, because then—as you suggest—why would you write a fanfic at all and not just write an original story? When I wrote my fanfics back in 2010, I always made sure that I stayed in canon as much as possible. When I look back on them, of course, I regret some things, but that's because I've matured since then and now have a greater knowledge base about how things should be written. But nothing is perfect, and certainly most fanfics out there are not even in the ballpark of perfect.

It should be noted that most crossover stories end up being complete horse****, because—as you point out—most of these realms are incompatible with each other. Some are nicely done; I mean, I liked Desolation Ed, despite not really knowing much about Fallout. But we have to acknowledge that pairing two entirely separate realms that one is interested in is really just a psychological internalization meant to reconcile two disparate concepts in one's mind in an attempt to establish a greater meaning or significance.

In response to your point about anime, let me just add that I think anime is grotesquely overrated. There's almost a cultish response to it, especially amongst anime fans here in the United States, who seem to revere and prop up many aspects of Japanese culture unnecessarily. I never understood the appeal behind anime, and I don't mean to denigrate all anime fans, but I think we've taken it way overboard and put it on cultural pedestal. I've even seen it get to the point where people are actually physically and romantically attracted to fake anime characters with pale cheeks, innocent expressions, and… large assets. It's just a bunch of drawings and cartoons, guys; chill out. Move along.