Ford's characterization in McShep slash...

[ratcreature]

So I'm rereading some McKay/Sheppard slash fic, great story overall too, only I stumble over Homophobic!Ford. Now, IIRC when I first read story I didn't take much notice of it, because I hadn't read that much SGA slash at that point, and taken as a characterization in an individual story I can buy it. Some people are homophobic after all, even otherwise nice, likable people. But there are quite a lot of stories portraying Ford like that, and it baffles me. Sometimes it seems to me that in S1 team McKay/Sheppard slash he's like the default token homophobe. And I don't get it, not to mention that it rubs me the wrong way because I rather like Ford. Is there any basis in canon for why this is such a popular choice?? I admit that I have watched most eps just once (I don't rewatch a lot in general), so I might have missed some huge clue leading so many to arrive at Homophobic!Ford, but if this is purely a fanon thing, it's definitely one I could do without.

Comments

[medie]

Homophobic!Ford?

Huh. I haven't been reading nearly as much slash as I thought I had been.

I haven't seen any basis in canon for it, hell I'd think the opposite but then I never saw a huge amount of basis for it with Jonathan Kent either so I might be blind. My gut instinct here is the same as with Jonathan actually. He's a potential obstacle to the one twu wuv only here, Ford is competition. It's like turning the girl into an evol bitch troll who's out to ruin their lives, gotta get her out of the way somehow right? Same here.

It's pure fanon from my POV. Not having read ANY stories which feature that I'm a bit blindsided *wry grin*

[ratcreature]

Well in a lot of newer fic Ford is, understandably, absent, so it's less of a problem in much current fic, but from my impression it's really common in S1 team stories. Well, at least common enough to annoy me. Strangely enough I haven't noticed that many homophobic or evil Teyla stories, for example, nor stories depicting Ronon like that. Ford otoh is frequently depicted homophobic and/or conservative Christian (like Southern Baptist) who dislikes gays because of that. I wondered whether I maybe had missed a religious clue, and that authors extrapolated the homophobia from that.

[medie]

I must not be reading these authors, I don't remember it at all from the S1 stories I've read and, it strikes me as odd. It's got no canon basis. What we've seen of Ford's background has said nothing that would suggest homophobia. His grandparents raised him which suggests a fairly traditional upbringing but that doesn't necessarily translate into homophobia. It sounds to me like a cop out on the part of the writers to get the young pretty soldier out of the way. Creating an obstacle where there wasn't one to begin with.

[mecurtin.livejournal.com]

It's fanon, but it's unfortunately plausible.

Homophobia is rampant in the American military. Homophobia is also rampant in the Black community, especially the church-going portion thereof. If you want to have that kind of tension in the story, Ford is a logical choice. It is actually (given his age, vocation, & race) more probable that he is homophobic than that he would be unfazed by finding out Sheppard was gay.

[ratcreature]

Considering that the SGC military had to screen these people to work with naked, genderless grey aliens and the like, it's unlikely they'd get the most closed minded people of the bunch though. And personally if an author absolutely has to go that way, I find for example Bates as random homophobic plot device much less aggravating because he's already established as unsympathetic.

[catmoran.livejournal.com]

But there is a difference between finding out that the little grey alien is gay, and finding out that your coworker with whom you shower is gay.

Now, I do think that the screening mostly eliminates the chance that Ford would be aggressively homophobic. I doubt that he would even report another soldier. But I do think that he might a) slip up and blab to someone else b) no longer treat a friend as such c) attempt to 'save' a friend.

[catmoran.livejournal.com]

Oh, and Bates doesn't have to work as closely with Sheppard. I could easily see him doing a lot of sneering, but he's much less likely to have a panic response than Ford.

Teyla is so accepting of everyone except the Wraith, it seems unlikely that she would be homophobic. But it would be interesting to read; I wonder if there are any fics like that?

Assuming it's not McShep, the chances of Rodney being homophobic are so low it would almost inevitably be ooc. We've seen Sheppard as the homophobic one.

[ratcreature]

I don't recall any stories with Teyla being outright homophobic, but I have read some with the Athosians in general being not open to homosexual relationships, most commonly the disapproval is explained with Wraith-related reproductive pressure, and then Teyla was also uncomfortable with the idea.

[dragovianknight.livejournal.com]

Everybody knows dat de black mans is afraid of de gay.

[ratcreature]

*snort*

Then I'd much rather they'd use Bates as the homophobic plot-device, though. I mean at least that guy is already established as unsympathetic, rather than as easy going nice guy.

[dragovianknight.livejournal.com]

How dare you try to make them use logic!

[ratcreature]

Yeah, also surely the SGC made sure to pick closed-minded bigots for their expeditions because they work especially well with naked grey aliens and all that campy Goa'uld wackiness...

[neery.livejournal.com]

It probably is a purely fanon thing, but then, a lot of the common fanfic tropes are purely fanon.

Someone outing themselves/getting outed to a person who's close to them and finding out that that person is a homophobe is a pretty common and popular fanfic cliche. In SGA fanfic, Ford is the one who can fit that role by far the easiest. Like others have said, Teyla is far too accepting of pretty much everything to be the obvious choice for a homophobe, ditto for Elizabeth, and Rodney is far too educated and smart to fit the stereotype of a homophobe, too. Bates is right out -- not only is he not close to Sheppard, he's practically his enemy. Homophobic enemies finding out that someone's gay is also a cliche, but a different one.

Ford, on the other hand -- probably Christian, probably raised pretty conservatively. If you want to write the "friend turns out to be homophobe" cliche, which many people obviously do, in all fandoms, he's by far the most obvious and easiest choice.

So basically, I believe that it's not so much that people see the character as a homophobe, but that everyone else is even less suited to the role, so he gets stuck with it a lot of the time.

I'm not too fond of this particular piece of fanon, either, but as someone who tends to pick up favorite bits of fanon as her personal canon, I don't have a leg to stand on to condemn other people's favorite cliches...

[ratcreature]

Yeah, I'm not anti-fanon in general or anything (personally I'm especially fond of John having a special connection to Atlantis and/or a sentient Atlantis), it just kind of sucks when it casts a character you like as the "bad guy", you know?

[neery.livejournal.com]

Sentinent Atlantis/John is a favorite of mine, too. I'm kind of sad that there's been no more evidence at all for it in the newer seasons.