Flash vs Derpy

[Steel Accord 6,658]

@@Hive King,

 

Understood, no hard feelings. However your anger seems to be not on Derpy specifically but on fanon in general. Again, that's kind of unfair to hold Derpy herself as the golden calf just because she's the biggest example of it.

 

Big Macintosh: Quiet intelligence, raised Applebloom with AJ after their parents died

 

Trixie: Grew resentful and vengeful of Twi after Boast Busters. (Vindicated by canon, but it was an idea clearly shared.)

 

Doctor Whooves: THE Doctor sonic screwdriver and TARDIS included.

 

Lyra: Obsessed with humans which are apparently mythological in Equestria in the same fashion unicorns are here.

 

Caramel: the straight man, possibly homosexul ( . . . . must investigate further.)

 

Again, I could go on. My point is that the community and the staff have almost a circular relationship with how these characters come to be. Don't hold Derpy in the same contempt for hype, that haters do for this show just because they see a picture of one of the characters.

[Hive King 1,998]

@@Steel Accord,

What I truly hate is when so much fanfic is more of the same, so much of the overwritten angst. I've got a really bad tendency for mild dislike of characters to turn into loathing because of love for them. 

 

It makes me feel like I should overcompensate in hatred with equal measure to make a balance. It's really dumb, but yes, I dislike Derpy due to fanon, her actual character, I don't care about

[EpitomeOfTruth 243]

 

 

Flash is not a character, he's a walking plot device. He exists to give Twilight a love interest, something she didn't need. Let's focus on that aspect shall we? I wouldn't mind (too much) if Twilight had a love interest if it made sense. As it stands though, Twilight and Flash had nothing to go on in terms of a relationship. What do they have in common? What do they talk about? Again, if Flash actually had some character, maybe he's a straight A math whiz or is really good at chemistry and Twilight sat in on a class with him. One scene, that's all it would take. Just something to establish that Flash and Twilight actually have some common ground to start from.  

 

 

To say that Flash isn't a character is silly. It also seems that you're implying that the only way he could actually have any personality is if he was a genius or something, as if guitar playing nice guys don't exist anywhere in the world, I'm a guitar playing nice guy IRL. Also, you say that the only way the love interest would've made sense is if they had any common ground to start on. Not many high school relationships are based on common ground, hell, not even many adult relationships are. Think about any TV show or movie with a love interest. About how many of those started with nothing more than a look in the eyes, before the characters get to know each other? Im gonnasay quite a few of them

[Steel Accord 6,658]

@@Hive King,

 

So you grew to hate something because others have love of it? That's dangerously close to envy, my friend. You should never feel obligated to hate anything especially a mere symbol. Many people hate the swastika, but is it fair to carry the crimes of the Third Reich with it when it's presented in it's original context?

 

 

As per most fandom memes, I defer to Fallout: Equestria for presenting Derpy completely in-character. The world has gone to Hell, but she's still delivering things, still clumsy, still not talking, still smiling (the former is understandable and the latter is impressive due to lacking a lower jaw), and still as endearing as ever.

 

To get back to my original point though, it's not hypocritical for Derpy to be loved and Flash to be hated because the two characters are loved and hated for entirely different reasons. As for those reasons, I once again direct you to my original post on the first page of the thread.

[Hive King 1,998]

@@Steel Accord,

I still don't see the difference between emotions for them, other than that Flash has a purpose, Derpy doesn't 

[NotoriousSMALL 1,984]

flash was supposed to play a part in the movie but they completely screwed it up whereas with derpy shes just a background character with no story or role to play.

[Steel Accord 6,658]

 

 

To say that Flash isn't a character is silly. It also seems that you're implying that the only way he could actually have any personality is if he was a genius or something, as if guitar playing nice guys don't exist anywhere in the world, I'm a guitar playing nice guy IRL. Also, you say that the only way the love interest would've made sense is if they had any common ground to start on. Not many high school relationships are based on common ground, hell, not even many adult relationships are. Think about any TV show or movie with a love interest. About how many of those started with nothing more than a look in the eyes, before the characters get to know each other? Im gonnasay quite a few of them

 

 

No, but there's more to you than playing guitar and being nice. You are a brony, for one. My point is, again, Flash is an archetype. So are most of the Mane Six, but DHX was smart in adding traits to the archetypes. (Pinkie Pie and Dash sharing a love for pranks, for instance.)

 

No, I wasn't saying that Flash had to be Jimmy Neutron, but he needed something to make him more than just his niche. Not brainy? Okay, what if he corresponds with a music teacher that he has a close relationship to? He very well may have, but there's nothing we see of him that would indicate that. The writers weren't being their usual selves with him. Even the bit characters that show up for one scene and have less than five lines (Hayseed Turnip, Mr. Waddle, that puppeteer Rarity made the stage for) have more characterization than they would get in a similar show! With Flash, they just played it by the numbers.

 

Going off of what I said earlier, that teacher correspondance is also something that Twi and him could connect on. Maybe not all High School relationships begin with commonality (I imagine those are the ones that lack any kind of romance), but Twilight isn't just a high school student. She comes from another world with different cultural standards, to make her fall for someone with no common ground when she initially didn't want to make friends period is a massive breach in her character. If you have to compromise an existing character's personality to facilitate a relationship, that's not good!

 

(On just a personal note, I've never known a relationship in my personal life based off of nothing by a glance that lasted more than a week.)

@@Steel Accord,

I still don't see the difference between emotions for them, other than that Flash has a purpose, Derpy doesn't 

 

I believe I explained in great depth, why people react differently to them. Look, let's back track and just make sure we are on the same page shall we?

 

What do you think my argument is, whether you agree with it or not?

[Hive King 1,998]

@@Steel Accord,

Derpy has done stuff in the background, lots of stuff while Flash exists as a plot device, therefore, Derpy has more personality.

 

That was the basic point I gathered. You compared Derpy to other nonspeaking characters, but they actually did things, not just sit in the background twiddling their thumbs 

[Steel Accord 6,658]

@@Steel Accord,

Derpy has done stuff in the background, lots of stuff while Flash exists as a plot device, therefore, Derpy has more personality.

 

That was the basic point I gathered. You compared Derpy to other nonspeaking characters, but they actually did things, not just sit in the background twiddling their thumbs 

 

Are you sure you are not deliberately twisting my words or just flat out ignoring them? I don't mean that to be hostile, but I think I was quite clear on my reasons.

 

To summarize: Derpy has personality because the other characters react to her presence in the background even when the focus isn't on her. (Her popping out of the bobbing for apples barrel and draining it looking sad with Carrot Top on looking with an expression of resignation for instance.) While Flash has actions in the plot (one, mind you with Luna) but ones that couldn't be done by someone else.

 

I get it, you don't like the hype surrounding her, but to say she has no personality is like saying Maud has no personality either, or King Sombra. 

Edited November 5, 2014 by Steel Accord

[Hive King 1,998]

@@Steel Accord,

True, Derpy affects things in the background. This makes her more of a character than say, Lyra or Bon-Bon. But Sombra and Maud affect the main plot. Flash affects it too, but his role is really not cut out for him in any particular way. Derpy does her job of being a ditzy background character well and it is suited for her. Flash has more effect on the plot and is a more major force, but he is also a very blunt force. Derpy has less effect on the plot, but her force varies a lot. 

 

I simply don't find them different. They push different parts of the plot, Flash's main character status being cancelled out by his bluntness in doing so

[Steel Accord 6,658]

@@Hive King,

 

Of that, we can agree. Derpy is best when she is a background character, she can be focused on, but then she does become the subject of the individual writer's reflections on her.

 

Derpy appeals to most of us because her collectively recognized persona arose from the collective consciousness of the community very near it's beginning. As such, even with all of her quirky personality, she's a simple character. However a simple character can still be interesting. Link and Mario aren't particularly complex but look how well loved they are.

[Hive King 1,998]

@@Steel Accord,

Then it makes sense. I don't like Link or Mario. Their games don't appeal to me. I prefer Bowser from their games, his dynamic with the Koopalings, love for Peach, and being a king make him more interesting 

[Steel Accord 6,658]

@@Steel Accord,

Then it makes sense. I don't like Link or Mario. Their games don't appeal to me. I prefer Bowser from their games, his dynamic with the Koopalings, love for Peach, and being a king make him more interesting 

 

Let's see hear, self described as hateful to what others love, Weevil Underwood as a profile pic, doesn't like the heroes and likes the villains.

 

Something tells me you play the Dark side quite a bit. 

[ShadowPirateX 600]

I'm not particularly a fan of either. But in Derpy's defence, she wasn't forced into the plot like Trash Sentry was.

[Hive King 1,998]

@@Steel Accord,

Indeed. My love for Weevil, Rex, Paradox, and Pegasus stems that their monsters are unique. Kaiba, Marik, Bakura, and Yugi all seemed to be drawing out of a hat of stock monsters

 

Weevil and Rex use very animalistic beasts, insects and dinosaurs respectively. Also, their extreme rise in danger in the DOMA Saga was very interesting

Pegasus has his Millenium Eye, making him seem unbeatable along with the delightful toon monsters mixed with cthuloid Relinquished variants, representing his jovial outside with his mourning inside that longs for Cecilia

Paradox's monsters and himself all have a mask that resembles the smiley/frown drama masks, which is rather ironic, given how Paradox himself is a very serious person. However, it could be taken to represent that he uses twisted versions, costumes, of other monsters. 

 

Wow, that was a rant. I do like heroes though, Gohan from DBZ is an example. However, he gets my like because of the fact that he is both a badass and a kid. It's an odd balance and his relationship with Piccolo is great...until Adult Gohan, that was stupid

[Shanks 10,811]

But right now, she's a walking punchline for jokes with no personality that isn't fandom given. Well, aside from being unintelligent and clumsy 

She wasn't really given much of a chance to be anything else because of all the complaints about her first and only speaking appearance but fannon wise there are a diverse array of different takes and Derpy that go beyond just that. And clumsiness is a bit different from stupidity, there are plenty of fan portrayals of Derpy where she is a bit clumsy but is no dummy of course it depends.

[Jeric 46,834]

Guess I'll let John Green speak on the behalf of fans who like Derpy even though much of her personality is subtle and fan interpreted.

 

 

We all win!

 

DFTBA

[Adorkable 2,737]

Because Derpy never tried to snatch anyone's waifu

 

This. This so hard, I can't even think of anything else to add to it. Just..this.