Jan 2012 Archive, part c

Happy New Year, dudes!

...you might as well try re installing the driver for the DVD Rom drive, if it even has one. If it does not have one that you can find, or it doesn't work, and you live in the states, do what Dann says. Newegg also has really good sales and deals, sometimes, so you might want to watch out for those.

Newegg.com is a very good site - I've built at least a half-dozen computers with parts from there. They've also got customer reviews, which can be useful for knowing what's worth buying. Read the negative ones, as there's a lot of people who will give one star for dead-on-arrival hardware.

Maplin usually has some good deals on external DVD drives. Failing that I'd just see what's going on Amazon. There aren't really any makes to avoid, although if it's coming from overseas I'd be rather wary lest you get a Shoddy Knockoff Product.

Only if they aren't suefluenced, probably. A big difference between medium awareness and omniscience is that a medium-aware character is still at the whims of the plot; they may not know what else is going on in their OWN story or be able to manipulate their medium ('skip ahead chapters') in a way that could reveal things. The fact that a character might be a Mary Sue or an agent might be there may not occur to them because for all purposes they have the same perception as a normal person even if they have 'insider' medium-knowledge.

In short, while they may know they're in a story, they are still in the story and wouldn't know what's going on in scenes where they aren't there, or know that the PPC is part of the medium they're familiar with in the first place.

Besides, lots of characters like this are aware for purposes of humor. So while they might be able to wink sideways at the audience, they'd only be able to do it if it's funny.

So Pinkie Pie might be able to make a gag at the agents, but only after she's no longer OOC and only when it's funny. Being able to simply see through a SEP field may, or may not be funny. Besides, we aren't part of HER medium; we're practically invaders. So while she might be aware that she lives in a cartoon, she might not know WHAT cartoon or that the PPC exists at all.

Welcome to the Board! Here, have some chocolate, and enjoy your stay!

Greetings, new friend! No need to be nervous; your sanity will go away with time. And then you will merely be Jane!

Anyway, have a Random Superpower.

Hallo there! Here, have this conical hat and a box of tea biscuits!

The hat is made from tin foil and duct tape! It's indestructible, and also keeps the conspiracy theorists out.

The tea biscuits are just plain tea biscuits.

Welcome to the madhouse! ^_^

Here, have this random piece of electronic tat I managed to nick from Dr. Ashens while he wasn't looking. No idea what it does, although it's likely that it doesn't do it properly.

Don't feel nervous! We don't bite (usually), and we do love to have new people around. Joining places you under no obligations or expectations other than "be nice", after all!

Have a bag of pebbles and a Random Shiny Object.

What fandoms are your favourites, then, other than LotR (All Hail Tolkien! :D) and superheroes?

Hi, have some fudge!

Fandoms vary here, so I'm sure there are a few DC/Marvel fans here that will be thrilled to discover your existence.

Just a tip: Don't post a new thread more than once a week, because it "spams" the Board, pushing off the old ones at the end.

You're going to have a great time... if a wee bit masochistic (some of the badfic pluggage is traumatizing).

Eeee! A batarang! And... hydrophobic water... Also pudding! (I am unsure whether to eat it or not.)

Warrior with Many Faces, Superman has grown on me a lot since I started reading comics, and out of the vast catalogue of Marvel heroes some of my favorites are Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four.

Greetings! Have this replica of the Cosmic Cube made out of vanilla pudding as a welcome gift!
Out of curiosity, which heroes are your favorite in DC and Marvel?

Hi! Have a Batarang!

Welcome to the Board! Have some of my new and improved hydrophobic water! Now with (10^-4)% less explodium.

I think it depends on the degree of overlap between the spin-offs. Dr. Who has mini-Reapers, and Torchwood has mini-Reapers that can't fly in a straight line, because it is a spin-off. I don't know much about Torchwood, but what I have seen of it, it seems to deal with a similar flavor of monsters as Dr. Who does. I don't know if the mini-Reapers appear in Torchwood or not, though.

All Stargate canons originally were assigned a single mini, the mini-Mastadge--that slimy water buffalo/camel thing from the movie. That thing might have appeared once on SG-1 and definitely never appeared in SGA. It didn't make much sense to have a single mini for three canons that didn't even have a single shared (suitable--the Goa'uld weren't) monster featured between them, and the style of monster was different in each edition.

...there is a different mini for each part of the spinoff. I guess 'focus on different characters' is the best way to put it. When I have SG-1 characters have their names misspelled in an Atlantis fic, they still get Mini-Unas, and not mini-Wraith. I don't know if there's any official ruling on how series get more than one mini type, but I think a spinoff with a different name helps. Power Rangers and Yugioh both have those, so I would assume it would be possible for them to have more than one mini-type. I dunno, that's my opinion on the issue.

As soon as I post I see the thread below. Sorry.

I think that a possessed character can act like a replacement. Replacements are usually created by extensive Suefluence, meaning that there's a Sue around. Possession, on the other hand, is where the wraith itself is the source of the OOCness.

So a character would be unlikely to switch from possession to replacement since that would require the wraith to appear/disappear.

but I'd say that makes for an excellently interesting concept, and interest/fun is what the PPC is all about.

However (and beware, all I know on the subject comes from the Mentalist), a pacifist may indeed wish to hurt someone, but will restrain themselves due to their beliefs. When hypnotized, they may be forced to act on their wish to hurt someone that is hurting them/angering them etc etc or has done so in the past.

But would Boromir ever really do that? Nah.

Have an exploding, self-repairing boomerang as a welcome-back gift!

Would you be willing to add Sherlock to the wiki? I did the main bits of the article, but I've never seen Sherlock, so I can't properly handle adding it. (And of course any other updating you think it needs.)

A) Makes-Things isn't dead?!

B) I quite enjoyed the rubber ducky guns. Can I have an extra?

There's so...so... so many choices! So many reasons...

There's category A: People that are hungry and sad who you think deserve a nice dinner off on the side.

That would be: all single moms on the face of the planet (it's difficult), anyone from the hunger games (barring President Snow and the Careers, of course), quite literally millions of people from the past, especially from the Black Death (not that I want it), but ye gods, if anyone needs a nice dinner, it's them.

There's category B: The fascinating, fascinating people that exist...everywhere. Everyone's fascinating. I find everyone fascinating... if given enough time.

Um, I guess that would include a lot of psychopaths, though, which brings us to subcategory C: people who are pretty safe.
http://disc.yourwebapps.com/discussion.cgi?disc=199610

Now, I'm horrible with conversation, so most people I'd love to meet would simply terrify me. Let's disregard that. Pretend like I know what I'm doing when I open my mouth (which I never do)

There's basically every Terry Pratchett character... Miss Susan and Sam Vimes and Carrot and Angua and Sybil and Miss Susan's class, the lot of them...

There's Aerin from Robin McKinley's books, and Harimad-sol.

There's the whole lot of NCIS, and Jane and Lisbon and Grace and Cho from the Mentalist. All fascinating.

There's Jason Bourne, and Marie, both of the movies and books (preferably the books)... Ludlum only, of course.

There's Neverwhere's Marquis de Carabas (though depending on what state he's in, he may ruin my appetite), and Door and Richard.

There's the Three (Four, really) Musketeers...

There's everyone... and the only reasons those people are there is because basically they're the first people I thought of. Others are springing up in my head even as I write, believe me.

Sigh.

I suppose there should be an actual top three, huh?

Okay.

1) Patrick Jane of (the great god) Bruno Heller's TV show the Mentalist: fascinating, and not likely to kill me. Unless I was a serial killer, which, thankfully, I'm not.

2) Miss Susan of (the great god) Pterry's Discworld series: also fascinating, and more likely to scold me than kill me. Hopefully.

3) Too difficult. Just too difficult.

I was kind of itching to put Sam Vimes on there, but making the poor man go to a social function without his wife would be a disaster... not to mention the fact that most of the people there would scare him and he'd want to arrest us all or at least lock us up somewhere secure.

Masterharper Robinton from Pern, set before The White Dragon.

Faramir

Dr. Donald Mallard, Ducky, from NCIS

... so few spaces.

Anyway:

1) Chairman Jorhan Stahl (Killzone 3)

Who said villians have to be over the top bastards? While just as capable of cruelty as his fellow countrymen, Stahl is civilised, a smooth talker and, being a businessman from Helghan, might have some interesting stories of his own to share.

Just don't play poker with him ... he always has an ace up his sleeve.

2) First Lieutenant Rip van Winkle (Hellsing OVA IV)

A perfect combination of child-like naievity, innocence ... and, if push comes to shove, outright cruel crazyness. Of course, the facts that, for an artificially-created vampire, she has "the looks" and a serenading singing voice compounds matters.

3) Liara T'Soni (Mass Effect trilogy)

Asari biotic, graduate in history and archeology, rumoured head of an intergalactic intelligence organisation and one of the heroines of tthe galaxy. I certainly believe the stories she has will keep us going well into the night.

So many awesome characters to choose from! I'd probably end up narrowing it down to these guys:
1. The Eleventh Doctor. Not only would he be fun to talk to, I'd wear a bow tie just to see his reaction. XD
2. Luna Lovegood. I *really* want to know more about the Crumple-Horned Snorkack and whatnot. :D
3. Wigglytuff from Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky. He never fails to make me laugh. :D Of course, Perfect Apples will be a necessity at the dinner.
Close runners-up would be Sokka from Avatar: The Last Airbender, for funniness and delightful sarcasm; Kronk from Emperor's New Groove, both because he's funny and because he can cook really well; and Telemain from the Enchanted Forest Chronicles, so that I may observe his sesquipedalian loquaciousness and discover the extent of my capability to comprehend it. XD

Hmmm... so many to choose from.


1 - Sherlock Holmes from the 2010 BBC Series because he is several different kinds of brilliant, and I'd love to see what he'd make of me and my other two guests. Might make for some... awkward conversations (read: him trying to outsmart everyone else, but meh)

2 - Twilight Sparkle from MLP: FiM. I'd love to learn more about Equestria and how everything 'works' there, and I mean: cool geeky pony that can do magic? What's not to like?!

3 - The 10th Doctor from Doctor Who. Do I really have to give a reason? He's the Doctor! We wouldn't be short of interesting stories, that's for sure.

Hmm... three egotistical (well, 1 and 3 certainly) super-geniuses. This could be interesting.

Hmmm, this is a hard decision to narrow it so a small set, but, not impossible.

(Ten minutes Later)

Well, my final decision would be

1. Rodney McKay, from Stargate: Atlantis. Reason? Because he is the right mix of funny, sarcastic, and intelligent that would make the dinner conversation VERY interesting.

2. Luxury, from the PPC. Reason? Because she would be able to diffuse any tense or awkward situations (probably by doing something even more awkward). She is a nice enough person, and I'm sure she would have plenty to talk about, especially with so much food and people around.

3. Dracula, from Castlevania. Reason? Because the dude is regal while still being a demon/vampire, and would bring some posh into the dinner convo. He would probably think Luxury was Succcubus from his castle, so not too offput by her. And hey, if things get bad with him, we can always count (Stealth Punned!) on a Belmont crashing in to fight him, and some cheesy dialogue from the two.

I could turn this into a banquet room so easily .... :)

But my first three choices would be:

1) Brother Cadfael. He'd have a lot of good stories, and from references in the books I don't think he'd be upset about my not being Catholic. I'd have to get some of my friends to recommend a wine to go with dinner, though, since he's from a period when that was normal even for monks. (From the novels by Ellis Peters.)

2) Since I'm already getting wine recommendations, the second guest will be Captain Jean-Luc Picard. He's another person who should have lots of stories. (From Star Trek:The Next Generation.)

3) For my third guest, I'd probably go for Belgarath the Sorcerer. Talk about having stories, the guy's been active in the world for seven thousand years -- and he spent a chunk of that time traveling as a professional storyteller, so he can certainly tell them well. If this is post-Malloreon, I'd set a place for his wife Poledra as well. I thought about inviting Polgara, but I think she would be too intimidating as a dinner guest; in canon she's the best cook in the world. (From the novels by David Eddings.)

I'd probably keep the menu simple, so we can relax and enjoy the stories.

1. Professor Kirke from the Chronicles of Narnia. He would have plenty of interesting things to talk about.
   2. Percy Jackson from Percy Jackson and the Olympians, because he's funny. Things tend to explode around him, though, so I probably wouldn't want to put out the nice silverware.
   3. I have to pick Paul Fester from The Midnight Dancers, by Regina Doman. (That's a novel-length retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses which, sadly, lingers in obscurity.) He's very friendly and can juggle and can play the flute and is a ninja and he's AWESOME. He gets along with everybody, so he'd be good at breaking the ice.
   This would be the best dinner ever!

Okay, first off I would pick John Watson from the BBC show Sherlock. He'd be pleasant company, and if nothing else, he'd have loads of stories to tell. I only hope that Sherlock wouldn't somehow manage to join us uninvited, but if he does, well, it's not like he'd be hogging the food.

Secondly, I'd pick Richard Castle, from Castle, pretty much for the same reason as John. He just seems like he'd be nice to hang out with, and it'd be fun to see him and John swap stories. Plus, I could grill him for writing tips.

Thirdly, Raven from Tales of Vesperia, mainly because he's my favorite character of the current subject of my obsession. Seriously, this guy's like the physical personification of fun. Schwann's not invited, though.

I'm going to add one more place setting, just to prevent this from being a total sausage fest. Abby from NCIS is also welcome dinner company. I think she'd get along pretty well with John and Castle, since they're all from crime dramas. I'd have to ask Raven to keep the flirting to a minimum, though.

This was fun!

Hm. Any three from any canon anywhere? I would have to say...

1) Firion from "Final Fantasy II". At least the way he's portrayed in Dissidia. Personally, I enjoy political discussions at my dinner table, and it would certainly be nice to see what Firion would our government to be like in comparison to that of Palamecia (US government, that is).

2) Buddy Sorrell from "The Dick Van Dyke Show". Although ultimately a personfication of Morey Amsterdam himself, Buddy is sharp-witted and talks in daggers. Which is great, because he'd make a whole bunch of fun at the dinner table.

3) Lavitz from "Legend of the Dragoon". No particular reason. I just personally liked Lavitz as a character and companion from the game where he made his brief appearance.

1. First off, I'd have to got with General Jack O'Neill of the Starate verse. Why? Well, he's funny, and would help keep the other guests in line especially...
   
   2. Polonius, of Hamlet fame. The only Shakespeare character I really like, he'd ensure that there would never be a quiet moment, and to be quite frank, watching the pompous windbag interact with O'Neill would make for a very interesting dinner...
   
   3. Kane, of Command and Conquer fame. What? I want someone to appreciate the amusing situation caused by sticking Polonius and Jack O'Neill in the same room. That, and I'd love to watch him say "Pass the roast beaf" and other such mundane things. I'm sure it would be the most epic meal ever. "You cannot kill the messiah. However, these brussel sprouts are an excellent attempt."
   
   

Well, here are my three:

1) Gordon Freeman, from Half Life. He'd be a very... quiet guest but his sheer awesomeness would more than make up for it.

2) Lord Vetinari, Patrician of Ankh-Morpork, from Discworld. I'd like to have a conversation pertaining to statecraft with him.

3)Rincewind the "Wizzard" (and the Luggage by proxy), also from Discworld. Rincewind embodies one of my favourite character types: the shameless yet very lovable coward. The Luggage deserves a special mention for traveling through dimensions just to reach its master.

Is it also a dinner for schmucks? ;)

Anyhow, if I had to pick three people to dine with me...

1) Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games. I'd probably ask her to cook just about everything since she's experienced with that kind of thing. Yeah, she'd be more than a bit uncouth at the table, but given where she comes from that's to be expected. Plus, I think she deserves a chance to eat some meal without suspicion of being watched by the Capitol, so that would be welcome for her.

2) Thane Krios from Mass Effect 2. A mysterious assassin, sitting down and eating dinner would actually be quite nice, especially given that Thane is the most spiritual assassin ever. I'd imagine that the conversations with Thane would kick major ass, so... Yeah.

3) Myka Bering from Warehouse 13. Because we need more by-the-book Warehouse agents relaxing around the place, that's why.

This is absolutely the place for this kind of thing. I love it. And now on to the more important question. Here are my three guests:

I would go with Saltheart Foamfollower. He was a Giant of Seareach from The First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever. He is jovial and the only thing he loves more than telling stories, is listening to stories. I would want him before he showed up in the books, though, since he got a lot more grim after that.

He can bring some diamondraught, which is a potent liquor made by the Giants.

Secondly, I would have to say that Thrall, Former Warchief of the Horde (World of Warcraft). He is wise and fair. He has stories, I've no doubt, and he isn't likely to kill anyone unless they are trying to kill him, which is not something that can be said for many Orcs.

Lastly, I think Thom Merrilin would round out the group nicely. He is a Gleeman, which is something very similar to a bard. He sings, he tells stories, he juggles; and that's just for starters. He can also hold conversations on philosophy and various other subjects.

All in all, I think this group would be fun to talk to. The meal would consist of some kind of roast meat, bread, vegitables, and, of course, the Giantish liquor.

Good times.

My alternate (by which I mean Sci-fi) list would include Captain Jean Luc Picard of the U.S.S. Enterprise (Star Trek: TNG), Admiral William Adama of the Battlestar Galactica(Battlestar Galactica 2003), and Captain Malcolm Reynolds of Serenity (Firefly).

Oh well.

My first would be Mina Mckee, from David Almond's Skellig and My Name Is Mina. She's an incredible person with a great outlook on life.

My second would be Arthur De Caldicot from Kevin Crossley-Holland's books. I really love the way he plays with words, and he'd be really interesting to talk to, I think.

And finally, Luna Lovegood. Because she's awegreat.

I very muchly like Hannibal! His dialogue is tons of fun to read aloud, and he can be both joking and serious. I wouldn't mind reading some "flashback" missions of him and Kay. They kept the tone of this piece fairly upbeat, and I didn't find it very dark at all.

Irmish? Irmish? What an awful-sounding name, even for a Yeerk. (No offense.)

Some mistakes I caught!
"The voice was familiar. He had heard it before, not to long ago."

"He thought about what Hannival had said harder about things than he had been previously."

"Hannibal watched the wheel’s turn in Orken’s head. When the look of confusion was slowly replaced by a growing anger, the agent know that Orken had had his epiphany."

It's a bit darker than the usual PPC stuff, but not grimdark, so that works.

I kinda like the whole "we have dracon beams!"

Also, Hannibal and Kay sound like fun people... what else is there about Kay?

Have some popcorn and a party hat!

Hey there! Have some of my hydrophobic water as a welcome gift! Guaranteed to contain at least 0.0001% Dihydrogen monoxide!

Greetings, rampant new friend! Have a Needler!

...or not! *GLOMP* Have some chocolate!

It's okay, we don't kill on sight...unless you're on the playing cards.

Ha. We should have PPC playing cards.

Hi! Have some fudge!

So you made your way over here. Awesomesauce. :D

I'm pretty new myself (only been around for about a month and a half), and I don't *think* they killed me. I'm 99.999999999% sure I'm not dead.
Unless the gigantic pile of welcome gifts suffocated me. XD
Speaking of which, in case that happens to you, have a teleportation device so that you can teleport out of the pile! XD

Gone Rampant Huh? Well, we can't have someone who has gone rampant running around. *Grabs a net*

.. In other news, here! Have a net!

Though we're not really an 'Organized Hunter-Killer' effort. More like an 'Organized Turn-Pain-Into-Comedy' effort.

Oh, I guess you need a welcome gift.

Here is your super-deadly assassin gun.

It shoots assassins.

Very, very small assassins.

Sorry for my capsing. I'm slightly hyper right now.

Anyway, welcome! Have some chocolate!

Well, we do other stuff than kill Sues, you know. Welcome! What fandoms do you like?

Ok. and two more
4) If you have a setting (say MLP: FIM) where magic is very commonplace, would agents have to learn how to use it? I remember in the Original Series, Jay and Acacia had to learn flight, but could use magic as Istari easily

5)If a large part of a story is a flashback to events that happened earlier (but for a different viewpoint) is it possible to interupt the later version without screwing up time?

1. The tradition is unfortunately, no. If it isn't covered in the mission, it doesn't happen. This is why you'll sometimes see PPCers detailing things in author's notes that they weren't able to include in missions.
   
   
   
   2. Most clean-up is usually done after a Sue is taken down by the agents. If a character is said to be next to the Sue right up until the moment of the agents stopping the story, then they can't neuralyze that character before then. The Suefluence needs to be gone from a character for it to work properly. If a character disappears from a story, then that is a bit different.
   
   I've rescued or neuralyzed canons that no longer appear in a story well before the end of a mission. In the Victorian Zombie Apocalypse story, Mrs. Hudson, Lestrade, and Mary Watson all appeared in the story, then were plotholed out of the story. The agents rescued them and sent them to Medical (Lestrade and Mary both badly needed Medical's help in their last appearance). In other cases, where things aren't so apocalyptic I've pulled canons aside, neuralyzed them and sent them on their way after their last appearance in the fic, under the idea that they have been removed from the Suefluence by the story itself.
   
   There is also the possibility of saving a canon or OC that you are recruiting from an off-screen death (or on-screen if you use a Simulation Generator), and then having that character stay with you for the rest of the mission.
   
   
   
   3. I'd say yes, RAs can open a plothole to wherever we want them to, but if the agents don't have permission to go witness Lily and James' murder and the fic doesn't deal with it, then the agents should have a good reason for doing it or be willing to face reprimand from a Flower.

!) Well, it's not played out any more, so I'd say no.

2) If the neuralyzed characters don't have any more appearances... in my current mission, the agents drag along a misplaced canon they pulled out of a plot hole. So, really, it's up to you, I'd say.

3) I don't see why not. It's the same 'verse.

Yo! *glomps the newcomer* Have some Bleepka! *lets go, hands over bottle*

Welcome to the Board! Stick around, it's fun here!

As a gift of greeting, please accept an Alliterative Apple, which will certainly compel the bearer to actively alliterate. XD

Another MLP fan? So awesome! (Fluttershy is best pony, btw)

Hi there! You may have MY autograph. Not sure if you'll want it, though, since I've only been on here a couple of days myself.

A very hearty welcome to you, sir/ma'am/eldritch bring! Have some of my world-famous hydrophobic water! Can double as an industrial-strength paint remover.

Greetings, new friend! Have a neuralyzer! Here, I'll show you how it works. You just push this button here and

Greetings, new friend! Have a neuralyzer! Here, I'll show you how it works . . .

Hello! Didja read the original series? If not, go do that! Those, and OFUM, are the only things that are 'required' to start, and OFUM's really more of a reccomendation. Have a shiny thing!

A) Society owes us?! I got the impression we were all in it for the laughs (and groans, depending on how bad the badfic is)

B) WELCOME! Do you plan on writing missions? If not, that's cool... if so, even cooler. :D

C) I'm Aeidhryn, the perpetual-newbie with the cat-on-the-keyboard name. It's a pleasure.

D) Advice for the future: Do not post new threads more than once a week. It tends to rile people up when the front is covered and old threads keep dropping off at the end.

E) Beware! Soon you will be bombarded with welcome gifts--ships, plovers, and various foodstuffs.

F) Have an awesome day.

Hi, have some fudge!

As far as an explanation goes, have you made it to the Wiki yet? I'd start off with http://ppc.wikia.com/wiki/Guide_to_the_PPC , and follow links where they lead you.

Of what did you require an explanation?

...When you decide to start PPCing, I think this author's fics could use the agents' attention.

(Then the poor Department of Technical Errors agents would sleep better. Ouch.)

~Araeph

I'd advise you to be careful with a World One recruit's background: they just can't simply vanish off the surface of planet Earth just like that. They're bound to have friends and family that are going to notice their absence. Perhaps it could be a plot point for an interlude or something of the genre.

The talking golden retriever agent sounds familiar, though. Lemme see... *searches wiki* Yup, there it is: Agent Nytbloomer and guide dog Judy. Not that "it's been done" really means anything; just something to be aware of.

Of course, the usual criticism I have is not actually a criticism, but a question: Why? A character is more than a collection of traits, so why these traits? Where do they come from? What effect on the character's life do they have? How will they aid you in telling a story? What is their purpose? If they don't come into play at all, they might as well not exist, so it's always good to think about these things.

~Neshomeh

Aisling's a pretty (or, for those of you who think that's too petty and superficial, it's "aesthetically pleasing") name.

I'm interested in their assassination modus operandi and their reasons for joining-Aisling's in particular. Why does she join? How did she get into the HQ? Did she see the outside of it?

What is an "extracted embryo"? I'm curious. Oy, the PPC makes slang faster than I can keep up.

I'm not exactly good for SPaG (I'm Italian, so English isn't exactly my native language), but I'll check about mission flow, plotholes and canon.

Looks good. What did you draw it with?

The PPC is not about precedent; it's about what's funnier.

hS

A) You don’t have agents up here, so what do you want?

You to tell me that if I do come up with a couple, they’ll be considered on their own merits and not for a lack of credentials that has nothing to do with them. (I.e. is it worth my time to do a write up?)

If we understand you correctly, this implies that telling you "yes, you should apply for permission" will result in you whipping up a couple of agents and submitting them for approval on the spot. We think that this is a bad plan, since hastily conceived agents are unlikely to have much merit upon which to be judged, all other matters aside. Character creation is one of those things that gives back pretty much exactly what you put into it and shouldn't be rushed. Also, while we happily acknowledge that there's more to permission than agents, we're a little insulted at the suggestion that we wouldn't judge the characters fairly. What makes you think that?

That said, the rest of the points are kind of moot, though we would like to add that you do, in fact, have access to beta readers. We're not sure why you think that's an issue.

~Phobos and Neshomeh

What the kriff is Fluttershy doing being a mind-controlling jerk? It's true that she uses The Stare on occasion, but it was never out of malice. She used it to stop a cockatrice from turning the CMC to stone.

Is there any Bleepka around anywhere? I need it.

The "Ridely" series
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6453776/1/Ridelys_rebirth
alter his last deafet Ridley seaches foar a way to kill Metrod the robot. - Metroid - Rated T

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6476895/1/Ridelys_faet
Mertoid attacs teh Spaec Piarte baes and Rildey meest hs faet - Metroid - Rated: T

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6694409/1/Ridelys_adventure
This stroy got remobed form the siet so I reuploading it. - Metroid - Rated: K+

And its two spin-offs:
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6827108/1/Karids_expoilts
So I decideded to wrote another Mertoid stroy but this 1 is abuot Krai insted of Ridely. - Metroid - Rated: T

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6927787/1/Mother_Barins_ossidey
Brain gets a shooted itno speace and expoldes some stuf, based on a ruqest fom Gamesfaq - Metroid - Rated: T

They are all trollfics with worse spelling than My Immortal. They are also ultra-short, so it would be rather easy to do them all in one mission.

This is disturbing, but I honestly don't think it's anywhere near on the level of Cupcakes or Sweet Apple Massacre.

Maybe that's my extremely sensitive gag reflex talking, but I found this rather dull.

By the way, can we post other badfic on this thread? I just came across the biggest Mary Sue I've ever seen. Ever.

It's obviously intended to evoke this kind of response. Why else write such a thing?

What did I just read? I mean it's not as bad as some 'grimdark' MLP fics that I've seen, but it's still pretty twisted.

I think this about sums it up:

"Well … I wanted a filly of my own, and it seemed the obvious choice to turn my friend into one."

wut.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go wash out my brain.

Please keep it away... I just got back from reading the worst fanfic writer's fanfic... This one's too much...

Is it bad that these things hardly faze me anymore? I mean, what goes on in the fic certainly does, but the fact that people write this stuff has become pretty commonplace in this fandom. I mean, between Cupcakes and its fan-made spinoffs and sequels, The Rainbow Factory, and the Creepy Ponies artwork series on Deviantart, it's disturbingly common for fics to have horrible things happen to the ponies.

There's actually a separate genre for it on Equestria Daily. We call it "Grimdark as ...".

...but WTF? Fluttershy. Drugs Rainbow Dash. For the lulz.

Oh, and in case anyone still had residual faith in humanity, Sweet Apple Massacre. NSFW, NSFB!!!!!

Synopsis: Big Macintosh does unspeakable things to the CMC's and brain... closing... down... *beeeeooooop*

New levels of Not Wanting have been achieved today.

Why?! D:

also, badfic is fine here but you cab also put it in "unclaimed badfic" on the wiki.

do you write missions, and if so, are you willing to collabarate on this one? Full disclosure: I'm completely new to the PPC, but I DO watch ponies.

Badfic post is fine, so long as there's only one thread of it visible on the front page at a time.

Now, what is this...?


Oh.

Oh dear. D8

... ! ...

Canon damage is when a canon is viewed differently by the audience from its original release. Some examples are Uncle Tom's Cabin, which was actually re-scripted by different people because they didn't like the message, or the Sonic Universe games, that have had their image irreversibly changed by saturation of badfic and bad art.

These works have been changed and patched since their release to the point where some meaning has been added, changed, or lost. These particular damages seem to have healed, and the canon has become stable. Nobody disputes them.

I would even venture so far as to say even a bad translation or adaptation would damage a canon, and if the canon can't heal... its meaning to the audience changes. A good example would be Final Fantasy 4. It had a horrible translation, and if it hadn't been re-translated later then it would have been stuck that way. However, some items of the bad translation stuck, healed-over into in-jokes...

I'm really, really sorry that I put this up as an open beta. I had no idea this was frowned upon.

While I can't say that I'm an expert on the Department of Intelligence, I didn't see any canon contradictions. Also, believe it or not, I didn't see a single spelling or grammar error.
Overall, it seems pretty good, although you'll probably want someone more familiar with the Department of Intelligence to go over it as well.

Yes, I "crowdsourced" as you call it. Yes, I understand why I need a beta.

No, I have no real excuse that will not be shot down in a column of sulfur and fire.

*heads off to find beta*

In response to your note to Phobos & SeaTurtle below:

Actually... The people in the chatroom had been doing it for some time first; I've been noticing it for awhile with a lot of permission requests and some items from other people.

Obviously I've spent no time in the Chat, but in all the debates about Permission, I seem to recall various PGs saying that it's a good thing to ask in the Chat for people to look over your Agents in advance. Is the distinction between saying "Hey, Wisepersonington, could I email this over to you?" and saying "Hey, everyone, here's stuff, tell me if it's good!"?

hS

Perhaps a basic list of betaing tips and such should be posted on the wiki? Since after reading these posts, I have come to realise that I have done these things. I did not know this before and feel bad for the people that read over my story, if I did manage tarnish their image.

The problem is, this isn't always commonly known information. I didn't know and I can bet a number of other new people didn't either.

I ... well, to put it simply, I beta-read July's post and just noticed I missed a "number vs. amount" mistake, drat.

Anyway. To add my own two cents as a beta (albeit one with the worst habit of procrastination, if not getting sick/hit with real life/married on the job), if you agree to beta-read something, you agree to share equally in the responsibility for the finished product. If people are still pointing out errors and things that don't work after you're done with it, you did not do your job well enough, and neither did the author. This is a bad thing. You should both learn from it and do better in the future.

If there are multiple betas and this still happens, I don't even know what to say.

~Neshomeh

The idea of "crowdsourcing" betawork really, really puts me off. I wouldn't want to risk my writing even being seen by the general public, not until a beta-reader had told me that they had no more issues with what I wrote. It's a personal ethic I've picked up (read: had hammered into me by several tough but very kind betas) since I joined the PPC, and as July said, we should be doing the best we can for our own writing if we're going to comment on other people's.

I've also experienced bad things on the other end of the beta-reading relationship. I had one person ask me to beta a piece - which I did, as thoroughly as I possibly could, making all my comments and adjustments in bright red - and then they posted the original, unbetaed piece and credited me as the beta-reader. I was horrified and never offered to beta for them again. Not paying attention to a beta-reader is a massive, massive disrespect when they've put so much effort into trying to help you.

There are people in the PPC who love to be the second pair of eyes, and will happily take on the job if asked - or even volunteer for it.*

Please, don't continue this trend of asking the people who want to read your story if they'll please check it for errors while they're at it. That's not why they want to read it. Not to mention, you're likely to get contrasting ideas of what an error is, based on things even as simple as alternate spellings. (America vs. England, Round Fiftybajillon! DING! XD )

Finally, I can't resist putting a basic guide to getting betaed here, in the hope it helps and/or entertains. :P

Step 1: Get a beta-reader. There are plenty of them around the PPC, as has been said. They don't bite. :D
Step 2: Ask them to give your work a proper look-through. If you can, make time to sit down and chat with them as they work, so you can answer any queries they have as they go. It can sometimes give you new ideas, too!
Step 2b: If you can't sit down and chat for any length of time, ask them to mark every change and query they find, so you know exactly where the problems are, and then get them to send it back to you.
Step 3: Look over the betaed piece thoroughly and alter things as your beta-reader suggests; fix your SPaG, respond to queries, polish things up a little more.
Step 4: DO NOT ASSUME YOU ARE NOW GOOD TO GO. Take the redone piece back to the beta-reader and ask them to check it again. You may have made other mistakes in the fixing of the originals, or there could be something your beta-reader missed first time round.
Step 5: If your beta-reader is not satisfied with your work, return to step 2a or 2b as appropriate and repeat. if your beta-reader is satisfied with your work, go to step 6.
Step 6: Publish!

Hope this helps.


*I am one of those people. Willing to cover for assorted fandoms including (but not limited to) Tolkienverse, Harry Potter, Discworld, Narnia (books only), Redwall, things written by David Eddings, and Pokemon. Drop me an email at cassie.dramateacherATgooglemailDOTcom if you have something you'd like me to take a look at!

I'll use the term "mission" to indicate the text, but I think the same rebuttal works for any text.

I tend to consider a mission "released" only when posted on an "open" site. One you could access with any sufficiently specific Google search, or just by finding a random link anywhere.

GoogleDocs isn't, as the only way to access the document is to click on the link to the mission in beta status. Provided only in the beta read request.

And I want to underline that, beta read request. The ones opening the link are supposedly only Boarders who want to actually beta the mission, or maybe just have a look on how you are writing for just a couple of quick advices. Alias mostly the same people who already did beta reading the old way, and they just got the link on the Board instead of in a mail. (And they find the mission exactly in the same state either way).

True, nobody stops you from just reading it, but you are reading something not completed and you know it.

Sure, I agree with you about the fact that few beta readers actually answer to those requests. In fact, from my next mission I'll start asking Beta Reader List people directly again via e-mail.

But I'll also keep posting the beta request on the board with link to the Googledocs document.

We are the PPC. We are mature enough to not click on a link with "BETA REQUEST" over it if we don't want to be beta readers. And we are also supposed to be able to recognize when our beta-readers finished working or not.

I usually let at least a week after the last beta reader edit/comment before considering the beta closed, unless all of them gave a "whole mission opinion" and there are no major issues that require rewriting of parts of the mission. (In fact, by the time I actually posted my interlude, the beta request was already off the first page)

I am not giving an excuse to the ones who, like Vixenmage said, basically rush through beta status without letting their beta readers actually beta on it, or actually put the mission in beta status right after finishing the first draft (the horror... the horror...), as JulyFlame implied. That's absolutely wrong and unspeakably immature.


Er... To the ones who didn't understand yet what I am saying, as I might be a bit confusing: crowdsourcing can work, but only if who calls for it doesn't use it to rush through release like some Suethors do. As I do it, it's only supposed to lessen e-mail exchange and thus save up a little bit of time.
Since some of us have little free time, it gives them more time to actually work on the betaing.
Of course, crowdsourcing alone isn't enough, as I noticed after using it two times.

While there is nothing wrong with saying "I am looking for a betareader for a mission in X fandom" and then working with the interested party to edit the work, there is a problem with saying "here is my mission, feel free to beta it."

Part of what the beta process does is it helps you to learn how to work with an editor. The process fosters dialogue between the writer and beta, and allows them both to become better at what they do.

There is no dialogue with crowdsourcing, and no one really gets any better.

I don't have time to respond to all of this and nitpick and whine and all that, but I do have one thing to agree with, heartily.

Additionally, if you add the names of the people who partially helped with corrections as betareaders, but there are still errors in the story, the perception of those people will also be changed.

THIS. So, so much this. If you ask me to beta or glance over your work, for SpaG or canon or whatever, and we get through one page or two, and decide to call it a night, I did not beta your story. I cannot politely express how much that irks me. Because here's the thing-- if I went over your story for four hours, or full days, and we discussed the issues, the characterization, the style, the formatting, over the entire thing... that is not equivalent to going over the comma errors on the first two pages, and deciding to call it a night and go back to the work later.

And people, on just about every writing forum I've been a part of, have done this to me multiple times-- we talk on GTalk, or the IRC, or AIM, or whatever, and after a cursory reading, I say "Okay, that's all I can do for tonight, let's go over this more later," and then the next morning I see my name credited on the 'Board as beta, and it drives me crazy, because I know there were issues with the story we didn't get around to fixing.

The rest of what July is saying, I'll have to look over more when I've got more time. I just wanted to say that the issue she has, there, is a very, very valid one. Please don't credit someone as a beta if they haven't told you, specifically, "Yes, this is a finished work, no more issues I can see."

SECRET AGENTS


O'Neil, who had spent the last several hour

Orken, who was busy sorting through the contents of his backpack, rolled his eyes. "Yes, Agent Thomas, Agent Ilraen is an Andalite. I congratulate you for noticing that, and not letting your desire to greet him and invite him in get in the way. You know, silly things like manners."

I loved this bit of sarcasm. It's like Orken at his best. The kind of thing that makes me want to read more about him.


"If you wish to give up the notebook and continue your self-injury, Agent Ilraen is willing to note down charges."

This line made me laugh.



(This next section is pretty round about, but I think it works. It really did take me a long time to figure out what it was that was bugging me, and I thought maybe the process would be of some use. This was pretty hard to put my finger on, so it truly is a subtle thing. If I wasn't trying very hard to give some concrit here, I probably never would have mentioned it or given it enough thought to figure out what unsettled me.)

The argument between Ilraen and Orken felt off to me. I think I am supposed to be getting that Orken cares, but isn't wanting to show it. It was working, sort of, up until Thomas intervened. Then it just felt like Orken got to get off the hook with being pompous. He did apologize of course, but--I'm sorry that I can't pin point it exactly--the scene just left me feeling like Orken is a dick, but that I should be feeling that Orken is a Jerk with a Heart of Gold. It does get better at the wrap-up when they talk about it, but it still feels...forced? I'm sorry I'm not being more helpful here.

Orken kind of comes off a bit for the worse with O'Neil, too.

"If there was some way to communicate with him, things would be simpler. As it is, we have to guess. It isn't anything urgent, I assure you. We keep him well fed and he has free range of Thomas' side of the response center.

He just seems so...dismissive. Like if O'Neil's physical needs have been met that he isn't important enough to matter beyond that, so why bother trying to understand, or even give the mini some sympathy and understanding over the problem.

Actually, this might be part of the problem I had with their argument. Like, I know that Orken is scared that Thomas could go insane, so I know he cares and worries from the mission where Thomas OD'd and from the mission where his former partner did go insane. I know that's a real thing for Orken. In the argument none of his side feels like it is coming from there.

Orken shrugged. "He never asked for Bleeprin, and for the next couple weeks he can't have any, anyway. This seemed to keep him from doing anything too stupid—he has a thick head and has never done more than split it open a bit, and it's less likely to alert a Sue than him yelling about vegetables and Roman emperors. It isn't like he's slamming his head into things full force."

He makes mention of the previous incidents there, but I have this image in my head of someone who is standing there with a totally unconcerned look on his face, speaking in an unconcerned tone of voice, stating facts that are kind of distant from his caring. Maybe it is the shrug? Because of knowing more about Orken's past with insane partners, I feel like he should be reacting. At the same time I know he isn't the type to just start hugging and crying about it, but maybe if there was some observational note, like made by Ilraen or even Thomas (who is in much better position to know that Orken isn't as cool with insanity in partners as he seems).

Like Orken is being an unreliable narrator here, in my mind, but nothing in the text supports that, so I've gotten a dissonance. I think that is finally it. It took me a long while to work it out. It wasn't a huge one, or it would have been more obvious to me, but I think that is what I've been trying to get at.


He sighed. Apparently this was how the multiverse rewarded agents who thought they were ready for more responsibility. Ilraen had never seen a public service announcement, but just then he could have written one.

Best line ever!



COSMIC LOVE

Sar-Plasm™ started to ooze from the walls.
The Minbari looked at the goo on the walls. "Intern Bjørnsen, please inform Janitorial that Agent Supernumerary has been to visit. They will want to clean this up before it dries."
Random Fruit Cart-hahahahahaha. this line reminds that I need to work on more randomly hilarious moments. This is the PPC, of course there has to be a fruitcart involved in a chase. Thanks for this one.


Nume carefully plucked her arms away from him, wearing a look associated with removing an old banana peel that hadn't quite made it into the trash the first time.

Very nice description there.

I've read the other comments that said that Nume took the killing curse too well, but to me, he seems to take it very Nume-like. To me, Decima takes it awfully well. She seems more excitable than Nume, but basically doesn't comment on it. It could very well be a calm in the moment fall apart later kind of reaction, but she's still holding it together pretty well through the end of the mission.

I kind of like how Nume is more rattled by the loss of the RA than he immediately was over Decima most likely being dead. I'd say he could have been more surprised about her being alive than he was, but that could be part of his general not caring.

I have to say that you write the best jerk character I've read in the PPC. Especially since I don't really get the Jerk With a Heart of Gold vibe from Nume, more straight-up misanthrope. They definitely aren't easy to write.

I thought the magic through the plothole was inspired.

Loved the ending. Decima is not going to let Nume off easy over the closet incident is she? I look forward to their future meetings.

I liked it so far. Nothing special, but not bad either.

My two cent on the RA thing: It didn't bother me that the RA was hit, it bothered me that Nume seemed a bit like "yeah, whatever." I mean, Decima just survived an AK. The last time that happened, big things followed.

Re: the Killing Curse and the RA: when the Killing Curse hit Decima, I was expecting a big, teary, and dramatic climax. Finding out that "Oh, it hit the RA," was a bit of a letdown and broke the mood of the story.

Otherwise, the mission was very funny. I especially enjoyed Nume and Decima's banter in Malfoy Manor and the chase scene.

Keep up the good work!

I enjoyed reading this, Nume and Decima are pretty good together, though I doubt they think so! :P

As always, I really liked when an agent was talkign with a Flower, and Nume's talk with the Lichen was one of my favorites. And Reading Decima's session with Mirrad (Who I forgot was a male >.>;) was funny too. I like it when people use Fic Psyche for more then just mentions. Oh! And the slipper! :D


Yeah, reading agents doing things with other people aside from partners before or after a Mission is always fun. Though, the chase scene was really good. So, I guess agents doing stuff aside from a Mission can be fun. Good idea with the stand too, I got a good smile out of that.

'three jagger like scars' Just... Mick Jagger. I can't say anything else about how great that was.

As for questions/nitpicks, I was confused for a second over the fic bits not being bolded, but that is really just a personal preference. It was still really easy to tell the fic bits apart from the Mission text, so no real biggie.

With that said, though, I would have liked to have seen some more fic bits. Specifically, the babies name. It took me a minute to try and figure out what it could be, and I am still not really sure.

As for the Killing Curse bit, I went to the Wiki to see if it was even possible. I always assumed that the Killing Curse was bigger then what it is. Like, a small wave or something. my Suspension of Disbelief wasn't really stretched too much by it, but I did find it really odd that there wasn't more amazement/unbelievibleness over her that narrowly avoiding sure death.

Altogether, I really, really liked reading it. It didn't seem too long, and had more stuff then just the mission.

I look forward to more from Decima!

-not sure why the killing curse didn't kill Decima, not strong enough? Hmm, kinda agree with PC that it is kinda weird. I always thought that it couldn't be blocked by somethign so small, and that the killign curse was not a bolt?
-

Supernumerary and Decima make a surprisingly good agent pair/team (although I suspect Nume was being more reserved than he normally would because he knew the end of working with Decima was in sight; I doubt he would bite his tongue quite so much if they were permanent partners). I also liked seeing the beginning of a story arc with Decima and her difficulties in accomplishing exorcisms.

I would have liked to see more quotes from the badfic in the "Cosmic Love" mission. Being told what's going on by the narration isn't as fun.

Also, I'd just like to say that I am very disproportionately excited to see a character I recruited appear in someone else's story. So thank you for that!

"What if James Bond where fourteen and didn't have a different girl every movie?"

Also, when did Voldemort come in? The sue mentions him when your agents first talk to her, but Voldemort has yet to be mentioned anywhere.

I can't really say this was very good, but I'm too tired to do a proper review right now.

I hashed most of my thoughts on this mission out with Phobos in the IRC, but he asked me to put them up on the Board as well.

First off, some positive notes. Numa and Decima have some wonderful moments together, and the dialogue between them is very well done. The action scenes are well-paced and easy to follow.

I had a minor quibble with the lack of direct quotations from the badfic itself. Now, those who know me are aware of my dislike regarding big blocks of directly quoted badfic. However, this particular mission goes too far in the opposite direction. There are points - usually direct shout-outs to something mentioned in the text which would have been improved if the audience were allowed to read what the text actually said. It is a fine line between too much and too little quoting.

SPOILERS BEGIN HERE

I should probably also mention a minor problem I had that Phobos was able to explain away: how, after the mission, Draco was able to Apparate everyone from the Twilight setting to Harry Potter's UK. I had thought that this was impossible (Apparating between continuums, I mean) until it was explained to me that the two realities were still crossed over at the time. I accepted that.

My largest issue with this mission, however, still stands. I was stunned (and not in a good way) when Decima's Remote Activator blocked the power of the Killing Curse and saved her life. The entire sequence smacked of convenience and Deus ex Machina. While it may be true that some of the technology in the PPC might be a bit sentient, this is never directly said or even suggested to be the case in this situation. It felt like a very obvious cheat to set up the remainder of the story and the epilogue when Nume and Ilraen reunite.

If I might widen my gaze for a brief moment, I've noticed events like this in more and more recent missions: that is, agents almost but not quite dying. Having this happen on occasion isn't a problem. A bit of action-related drama can really do wonders for a mission. However, it begins to strain credulity to the point of nonsense when agents from all over are able to just narrowly avoid death.

All in all, this had the potentiality to be a very good mission. However, the DeM right at the climatic moment really did drag this one down for me.

To be fair, it was a Mary-Slash-Possession-Replacement-Copy-Troll, and I'm not sure my Agents recognized it as such because one was brand-new and it was in the other's home fandom, therefore she was too pissy to think for most of the time, but still.

I believe one of the PPC-ers is bringing back a department/division (can't remember which) that deals specifically with trollfics.

I don't think I can help you beyond that, I'm pretty inactive ever since my school started beating my around the head with books...

Your character is a Mary Sue.

TV Tropes has no set definition of what a Mary Sue is, so here is ours, from the wiki:

"A Mary Sue is a fictional character that achieves its goals in the story with minimal effort, out of proportion to what the audience would expect given the setting(s), culture(s), and other inhabitants of that universe. In order to accomplish this, a Mary Sue will have character traits heavily skewed in favor of outstanding attributes vs. significant flaws. This character type is mostly associated with fanfiction, though it can be found in original fiction as well."

In your story, the main character smirks in the face of danger, mouths off to authority with no repercussions, is constantly pleased with himself, points out where everyone else is wrong and gets away with it, has a Sooper Speshul ability (he is even called "Gifted" with a capital G), is blatantly superior to everyone else in the room, accomplishes his goal of escaping (and even kidnapping the Queen-to-be) with no real effort, and anyone who stands in his way is ripe for pain or humiliation.

Please do not try to tell me that the random thoughts in his head constitute a "flaw," since they do not, in fact, hinder his efforts or goals in any way.

You can't get much more of a Marty Stu than that.

And if you are tempted to reply with, "Well there's a reason for him to be like this [insert explanation here]!" please keep in mind that a) no justification for these absurd and overblown traits was forthcoming from the writing sample itself, b) stories should not have to be explained in order to work, and c) your unwillingness to see the Stu for what he is is a perfect example of why the Mary Sue is such a tenacious pest.

In addition to your writing sample, I noticed further down on the Board that you didn't think Eragon, one of the most spectacular Sues in existence, was in fact a Mary Sue. Put together, these posts illustrate that you do not know how to recognize a Mary Sue, in your own work or in the work of others. Your grammar and spelling are sound, but you are not ready to write for the PPC.

Sorry for the disappointment,

Araeph

First of all, your paragraphs need lines between them to make for easier reading. Both this page and your writing sample look like one long, unending paragraph. If you do not wish to have lines breaks, then you need to indent your paragraphs, as in a printed book.

Now, onto the characterization of your agents.

The PPC's base is humor. Nothing about your EEC idea or your characters tells me there would be humor in your spin-off. Zoe Whittaker's angst-ridden past is not humor. The Answer's "irrational behavior" isn't humor. ('Lol random' as actual humor is incredibly difficult to pull off.)

Zoe's background and personality is utterly antithetical to the tone of the PPC; the PPC is not based off of rage and malice, and it has no patience for agents who wallow in their own misery. The Answer's background is more interesting, but so focused on making his character bizarre and eccentric that he's bound to put the readers off a little, especially those who are new to your PPC work.

I can tell that you spent a lot of time on the backstory, but nothing you created there seems like it would contribute in a positive way to the Canon Protection Initiative. If agents' backstories are needed, they are there to a) help them fit better into the world of the PPC, or b) to help the readers sympathize with them better. Neither one of those is true in this case.

For an example of a better way to approach this, suppose you created an agent who came from a badfic, and as a result had too much backstory to remember properly. The realistic results of this are that his memory of where he came from is constantly changing and contradicting itself. Sometimes it gets him down, but most of the times it's just a bit embarrassing, and it's also a good ice-breaker for introducing himself in the PPC Cafeteria. These conflicting backstories would not be a random conglomeration of dialogue that could come from a generator, or an excuse to have him infused with multiple personalities. Rather, they would be the result of one brain trying to interpret two or three coherent, yet contradictory sets of information.

I should mention that you have a good grasp of spelling, grammar, and sentence structure. I would recommend reading more spin-offs and MSTs (perhaps in the Sue-mocking communities) before attempting to get Permission. This is even more the case considering your writing sample, which I will get to in the next post.

~Araeph

I am indeed waiting for more chapters, two wouldn't be enough even for a fast MST.

Well, I certainly see what you mean about the charges. I don't know Card Captor Sakura all that well.

As of now, though, I don't think it's of sufficient length to be sporked. It looks like it has problems, but at present not enough of them to justify a sporking. This is one reason I tend to wait a bit for fics I want to make missions out of: I want to be sure that I get to feature the juiciest charge material possible.

So for that reason, I second EF's motion that you wait just a little bit. You never know, the worst charges might be just around the corner in an update you haven't seen yet.

Until it is longer.

What bothers me with many Harry Potter fanfics is that they can't get the years right. From the fic it sounds like sixth year, and it's 2012. Also, as you mentioned, why would Sakura and Tomoyo even end up at Dursleys'? The Dursleys hate magic.

A good question. Let's examine what you've told us, and see if we can find an answer.

Pros
Good writing style
Good SPaG
Easy to Read

Cons
OOCness

Neutral
Author is fun and quirky
Fic is an AU

Looks to me like the Pros far outweigh the Cons. I can't say for sure that it is badfic but, even if it is, it is probably not bad enough to spork. We aren't looking for fics that are just a little bad, after all.

As a side note, I put AU under Neutral because I sometimes hear people use it as a negative when talking about a fic, but there is nothing inherently wrong with an AU. It is a genre. Genres are neither good or bad. They simply are.

-Phobos

Another big part of the sporking selection process is effort. Many of the fics that get PPC'd clearly have no effort whatsoever put into them, in terms of SPaG and closeness to canon. In your opinion, did the author put a lot of effort into the fic?

Also, Popularity =/= Quality. I've seen loads of lazy, badly written, or disturbing fanfics that don't have a single negative review.

Thirdly, and most importantly, would it be funny? That's probably the main deciding factor. Would it be funny to spork it? Could you get a lot of jokes out of it, or at the very least a lot of development for your own characters?

Is the fic enjoyable to read?

Badfic is badfic because it isn't written well. (Yeah, a Captain Obvious). If the story all in itself is good, then it isn't a badfic.

Take Shadow Cristal Mage's "Nanoha Takamachi of 2814". OOCness is rampant, but the story is really well written. Yeah, it's a crackfic, but it has also an overarching plot. A truly masterpiece.

The two major warning bells of a badfic are bad grammar and flimsy plot. (For example, the one I posted just under this has a few holes in the plot, and a not-so-stellar grammar), and by your review that's not the case.

Don't we have some dramatic reading of C*l*br**n linked somewhere on the Board?

Phobos is responding to the overall request as I begin this, but I'd like to say this to everyone, particularly the newbies:

I'm getting pretty tired of seeing prospective agents pitched with half a personality, or an underdeveloped personality, or barely any personality. Granted, my own Ilraen started out that way, but there weren't a dozen other people already doing it at the time, he's from an actual badfic as opposed to a made-up one, and he wasn't in my request for permission. A permission request should show us what you can contribute to the PPC setting and make us want to read your stories. What makes us want to read about a character whose author admits that they haven't put in the work to make him whole? Why should we anticipate that this author is going to put in the effort to write good missions?

~Neshomeh

...submit a writing sample to go with this permission request? Once that is done, I will read it and make a ruling, if no one beats me to it.

-Phobos

Now that you mention it, it did seem to be down for a short while. I wonder why?

yea actually me too. i checked downforeveryoneorjustme.com and that said it was down too

Because I've had no problems accessing it at all.

Then again, it also helps if you specify what 'a short time ago' is. :P