Character Discussion: Cassie

[buffyangellvr23.livejournal.com]

Here goes...the character who often seems to get the most negativity, and sometimes it's for good reason. I know my LJ folder is gonna be swamped this week, but I'll turn you loose anyway LOL

I do like the animal loving part myself...but there are things that some of you say about her that I can see as well...both positive and negative.

Comments

[lisacharly.livejournal.com]

I agree. I actually left an Ani board over the incessant Cassie hate (though mostly the "replace Cassie with Melissa!" bull because really why does fandom have such a hard-on for Melissa?). I think it's one thing to dislike Cassie as a literary character, think that you'd hate her if she was a real person, even think she brought the books down though I disagree. But starting whole threads on "why Cassie should die", "who should replace Cassie?", "the books would have been so much better if Cassie died" and the crazy amount of "Rachel didn't die it was Cassie in Rachel morph" is just really, really uncomfortable sometimes. No wonder Cassie fans get scared off.

And now the cycle repeats, since Avatar fandom is scaring me off with its Katara hate...

While I do think there are plenty of legit reasons to dislike Cassie, I do have to wonder if the general fandom hate would be QUITE as fervent if Cassie were a male character. Plenty of the Ani guys do a lot of the same stuff Cassie does and never get called on it.

You're breaking my brain with this chica

[natural-blue-26.livejournal.com]

"replace Cassie with Melissa!"

Uhhhhhhhhh... The only person Melissa has EVER cannon been subbed in for is Rachel? WTF?! o_O' Where did that even COME from?! This doesn't even make any sense!

But starting whole threads on "why Cassie should die", "who should replace Cassie?", "the books would have been so much better if Cassie died"

OK, Cassie is stated not a character I ever really related to/etc, but this is OMGWTFBBQ-ness to the extreme. I just can't even fathom how most of the series plot would have gone is Cassie had actually left died is to dumb to write at any point in the series.

"Rachel didn't die it was Cassie in Rachel morph"

You're kidding, right? o_O' o_O' o_O' I've read ONE fanfic where someone actually pulled this off, but I had no idea there was a whole *movement* about this.

And now the cycle repeats, since Avatar fandom is scaring me off with its Katara hate...

I strongly suggest you find a nice, genfic community and stay the HELL away from the shipwankgst/etc in Avatar fandom. I don't know if it's because the fandom is so HUGE or what, but I generally avoid most of it.

Re: You're breaking my brain with this chica

[lisacharly.livejournal.com]

For some reason there are certain Ani forums online that have boners for Melissa. I so don't even get why. What's even weirder is that they pair her with David. I MEAN WHAT. They never even interacted, and Melissa's entire character can be summed up as "I like gymnastics and hug my cat when my parents don't love me anymore".

I've seen at least three fics where Cassie in Rachel morph takes Rachel's place. They baffle me.

Oddly enough, the only Avatar pairing I ship is Sokka/Suki, maybe Sozin/Roku some days. I could really give no less a crap about Zutara/Kataang/Maiko/Tophko. The shipping was just so secondary to me when watching the series.

Re: You're breaking my brain with this chica

[natural-blue-26.livejournal.com]

Before I spoil you, have you started season three yet? I remember you hadn't last I asked...

Re: You're breaking my brain with this chica

[lisacharly.livejournal.com]

I finished it two nights ago! LOVED IT OMG OMG.

(Pay no attention the non-Ani tangent behind the curtain... Er, comment thread)

[natural-blue-26.livejournal.com]

So many great Sokka lines in S3. And you had to like 'Zuko and Sokka'a Excellent Adventure' yes?

Re: (Pay no attention the non-Ani tangent behind the curtain... Er, comment thread)

[lisacharly.livejournal.com]

YES. I pretty much love Sokka whenever he does anything. Except The Library, he was an idiot in that one.

I teared up during Iroh and Suko's reunion, and when Sokka and Toph are hanging from the airship, with Toph blind and Sokka's leg broken, and he says "I don't think boomerang's coming back..." and she starts to cry. OMG HET LIFE PARTNERS FOREVER.

SORRY TO BUTT IN AVATAR JUST MOVES ME SO MUCH

[cxrdevil.livejournal.com]

omgggg i know ;;
just
almost everything about that finale
dfkgjsl; aghhh <33
have you seen these amvs yet? since you are new to fandom ys? THEY ARE PRETTY MUCH MY FAVE ENTIRE-SHOW-HOMAGES EVER OK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RtGMZv6Rjs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlV9gIQGfa0

[blue_rampion]

I must wtf at this replace her with Melissa thing. Melissa has like...infinitesimal characterisation. SHE CRIES ABOUT HER PARENTS AND THAT'S IT.

[lisacharly.livejournal.com]

She...likes gymnastics? And hugs her cat?

I don't get it either. The Melissa thing mostly bothers me because it's pretty much saying that a completely undeveloped one-shot character is better for the series than Cassie.

[iapetusneume.livejournal.com]

I know that this comm isn't as bad as others I've seen, but it was still really hard for me at first. For whatever reason I hadn't thought to look for a fandom for Animorphs, so when I found there was a community I was totally stoked... and then I came and saw several posts/comments with Cassie!hate in them. I think it was partially my nostalgia and that Animorphs is one of my Great Loves in terms of series, but it felt like a punch in the gut. I think things got better after the We Love Cassie! post was made and I think everyone here realized the whole thing was stupid to argue about.

I would have totally loved to see more of Melissa, and really anyone in Rachel's life - for whatever reason I latched on to Rachel the most for liking to look at family dynamics. (This is strange for me because while I have a lot in common with Cassie don't have it at all with Rachel.) I wanted to see more of her whole family, her family interacting with Jake and his family, etc. But no, Melissa should not, and could not, replace Cassie. To me she should be a different but still important part of Rachel's life. (And I thought one of the whole points of Melissa was to show how the characters have dimension. Just because Cassie is her best friend doesn't mean she's her only friend.

On a related note, Cassie and Rachel's relationship dissolving broke my heart. It made perfect sense but it was so hard to watch. Their friendship was a casualty of war long before Rachel died, and honestly that's what I grieved over more.

And yeah, fandom has double standards all the time. I'm sure that's part of what goes on with Katara. I would try to stick with your close friends to talk about Avatar to avoid the crazy. That's what I do and it's made it that much more enjoyable.

[blue_rampion]

Ooooh, Cassie and Rachel ;_; That really is so sad, and I wish we'd seen a bit more of their relationship in later books. The worst part is that they just...dissolve without a word. It just dies, and they're never the same again. We don't even see her reaction to Rachel's death.

[natural-blue-26.livejournal.com]

We don't even see her reaction to Rachel's death.

Which is a damn shame. Their friendship may have pretty much been dead in the water of #19/etc, but there was still all that shared history there.