about Supernatural fanfic...

[ratcreature]

I'm not feeling particularly fannish about Supernatural, but I have watched most episodes, thus while I was bored I looked around for Supernatural fanfic to read. I was mostly interested in gen, and while of course I knew that there's Sam/Dean slash I was actually surprised how common it is, from my first impressions even more widespread than gen (though I could be wrong about that). And I just don't get it. Personally I just have a hard time seeing Sam/Dean slash.

It's not that I'm particularly squicked by sibling incest, but the story has to somehow work harder to make that kind of thing work than other pairings. Not only because it has to make me buy that they would act on a sexual attraction despite incest taboos, that is similar in a way to other "relationship obstacles" in romance stories, but because it has to make me buy that there would be attraction in the first place. With most pairings I can buy that the author simply has a character feel attraction, inappropriate or not, and then the story goes from there, but for me (and I suspect most people) thinking about close family members with whom you grew up with, like your own siblings or parents and sex together is, well, sort of icky. Not just incestuous sex, but even the fact that your sibling or parent has sex with anyone, that's the kind of thing you don't want to contemplate in much detail. At least I don't, and I suspect I'm not alone in that.

I tried reading a couple of Sam/Dean stories, but they seemed to be much like regular slash in the way that it assumes that the reader buys the possibility for attraction between the guys in the first place. I don't quite get what makes this plausible for Sam/Dean shippers just from watching the series, and yet it seems very common. Which leaves me puzzled. I looked whether there was an essay on this pairing at ship_manifesto to provide me with some insight, but there doesn't seem to be one yet. So does anyone know of any Supernatural meta that would explain to me where the Sam/Dean shippers are coming from?

Comments

[halfshellvenus.livejournal.com]

For Supernatural, I could claim that I got drawn into it by other writers. Several of them, especially gravi_girl123's stuff that I first read on FF.net, really sold the intertwining relationship of ache, longing, and bonding through their isolated life that has gone on for so long. To me, it just makes sense, and there is so much tension and deep feeling that is evident that it flies off the screen.

For Prison Break, I initiated it. Perhaps I was de-squicked by the wonderful Hector/Paris work that writers such as montmorency do.

But in any case, the absolute drive the younger brother has toward sacrificing himself (his body, his innocence, his soul) over his older brother was so unexplained by the show that the idea of him being in love with his brother was one of the most compelling arguments I could make for it. The Prettiness did not hurt.

For both these fandoms, I felt compelled to wade in when there was a lack of background or depth to the characterization compared to the degress of emotion shown. I don't for instance write House M.D. fic because 1)I'm very satisfied with the job the show is doing of it, and 2)Other writers do it so well and especially tackle that tricky, snarky dialogue.

Just one woman's explanation. But if you don't see it, you don't. And that's to be expected. I never got the Mulder/Scully thing, myself.

[ratcreature]

For me I think there's a difference between not getting a pairing in the sense that it doesn't do much for me and I don't get the attraction, but I don't have an especially hard time to see how it could work with the characters, e.g. Mulder/Krycek in general and to some extent Mulder/Scully in the XF were like that for me, and not getting a pairing in the sense that I do see the attraction it has for me as a reader, but have a harder time to see how the characters would get there, which is the case for me with Sam/Dean.

I mean, for me to like a pairing I don't have to see it in the source itself, or even see a strong possibility for it in the source, because my natural inclination is to be a gen fan, in that I don't see subtext through slash (or het) UST goggles. In fanfic I tend to like pairings for their dynamic that somehow appeals to me, not for what I think is a the most likely thing in canon, but I still can only go there if either the story itself or some kind of accumulated background provided by meta, fanon or previous fanfic makes it plausible for me.

[halfshellvenus.livejournal.com]

but have a harder time to see how the characters would get there, which is the case for me with Sam/Dean.

Ah, this makes more sense. Well, I guess what I would tell you (for your theoretical musings) is that most of the Sam/Dean brothercest fics work their way to making that pairing work and be believable. At least, over here on LJ they do. I see very few fics that are established relationships or just "Hey, I'm bored, wanna jack off?" kinds of things.

Instead, the authors really draw you into the possibility. And it is usually a deliciously angsty path to getting there.

Because I think the reader can only be persuaded by the characters being persuaded in this case, if you know what I mean.

If you were to read maygra's series that starts with "False Comforts," or this (http://www.livejournal.com/community/sn_slash/6112.html) very sexy and compelling piece, you might see it.

BUT, that's only if you want to see if you could be persuaded.