So... We got another flame... But this one hit a nerve, so I'd like to talk about it specially.
This was from 'guest':
YOU ARE THE CRUELEST PERSON IN THE UNIVERSE HOW COULD YOU BRUTALLY SLAUGHTER THE NINJA LIKE THAT ITS DISGRACEFUL!
YOU HAVE THEREFORE LOST ME AS A READER FOREVER!
Yeah... Struck a real big nerve with me.
First off, this was written because a. I felt my fics were going, without a better word, DOWNHILL. Disagree all you want, that is my personal opinion; big reason I've decided to rewrite Tsuresara. B. I wrote this to relieve some of the anger and ideas running around my head. My best friend, known best as do0m to you guys, was supportive, and helped me keep the character design in line (no, this does not mean you are supposed to blame her).
Another point: If I was really cruel, I would've done A HELL OF A LOT WORSE. When I say 'a hell of a lot worse', I MEAN IT. I could easily have taken one of my previous OCs and made it about how one of them turns dark, murders all of her friends, then commits suicide after realizing what she'd done. Enola and Jessica would have been easy targets for that. Instead, I created Lucine to be a scapegoat. Cruel, maybe, but not nearly as cruel as taking one of my perfectly happy OCs and turning them into monsters.
Point number three: Might have been a dark and gorey story, but hey, at least it was realistic. Jessica shouldn't have trusted the ninja so easily, and neither should Enola. Lane, Alexia, and Moppet in NO WAY should have been as good as they were. Granted, Lucine was still a bit broken, but do0m and I did our best to develop her story and make it a bit more unique. While I love the Ninjago fandom and everything, let's face it: most stories are fluffy, and tend to not go into darker tones. THAT IS NOT BAD. You can have good stories without darkness. And also note my wording: MOST. Look enough, and you'll find darker themes. I've seen them. El Viento is a perfect example, which was recently flamed for being 'too dark'. Personally, I liked the dark tones because it showed HUMAN REACTION.
Last point: I tried also to show the humanity of the ninja. In the show, rarely are they seen as human beings who have to deal with the idea of terrible loss. Yes, Kai and Nya's backstory has their parents dead. But they NEVER show emotions addressing it. In this story, I tried to reveal the humanity behind them all. Zane, who was desperate for acceptance from others, fell into a trap laid by Lord Garmadon and Lucine. Cole, who cared a lot about his father despite their... bumpy relationship, ended up dying before his father's eyes. That inspired Cole's father to fight against Lord Garmadon in revenge. Jay, who cared about Nya, died in front of her. Nya, in response, went into depression, which makes sense since Nya was in love with Jay. But she still cared enough about her brother to risk her life to save Kai from Lucine's attack. Kai, who was willing to sacrifice himself to save Lloyd and Sensei Wu, accepted his death and even thanked his sister's killer when Lucine offered him absolution. Lloyd, who faced his father, the same man who had planned the murders of his friends and uncle. Lloyd reacted humanly, refusing to forgive his father and preferring prison life to being near Lord Garmadon.
And Lucine? Hey, I consider her a 'heartless bitch' for the first two or three chapters. But she slowly began to regret her actions, even as she tried to justify them with saving Zane and attempting to save Nya. Eventually, she tried to pay her price, only to fail and fall deep into depression similar to Nya. In the end, she couldn't forgive herself for her actions, and chose her own eternal punishment. Let's face it, I doubt any of YOU would be able to forgive yourselves.
Hate me all you want, but try to understand before you flame...
And 'guest'? You obviously had a broken caps lock, eh grammar, and have absolutely no respect for a writer even through they work hard to make a story for their readers... You get a D-. Yeah, **** *** *** ***** *****.
do0m: I will admit, for all that there are grammatical mistakes and several sentences are either mashed together or brutally fragmented, this reviewer at least shows an understanding of the concept of spelling and demonstrates a far more extensive vocabulary than is usually seen in such a review. I'm staying away from the content, as this is REALLY not my fight. All in all, a C-. (The grade would have been a C, but I'm a stickler over it's and its)