Fandom trope ranking

[igenlode]

I had a go at the fandom trope ranking, but it's tricky as I mainly judge fanfic based on what elements will put me off it, as opposed to actively seeking out stories according to whether they contain certain tropes. I will, in theory, read anything that is well-written, provided the summary sounds interesting and it doesn't annoy me, but those last two elements disqualify an awful lot of material; anything that appears to have been written in order to use the unfortunate canon characters as mouthpieces for the author's own social/political/personal-angst agenda, for example.

• Things that in principle will attract me: Canon Compliance (or a well-thought-out Trousers of Time divergence), Huddle for Warmth (if it *is* actually for warmth and not a sex kink!), Sharing a Bed ditto, actually (I think I have an vicarious craving for the sort of physical closeness I can't tolerate in real life -- though I can't picture that particular trope ever occurring in fanfic save in the name of Unresolved Sexual Tension), Missing Scenes, Ex-ex Lovers where a past relationship is repaired, Established Relationship where the story isn't *about* the characters getting together but about them doing other stuff, rather than just about them being domestic together, Gen Fic where the story isn't about 'shipping' at all, Unrequited Love
  
• Things that I like if they are done well: Arranged Marriage (provided it isn't some 'Marriage Law' fic that is just an excuse to force together two unfortunate characters for the author's pleasure), Fix-it Fic (if it's a 'fair' fix that is true to the canon/characters, rather than just wishful thinking), Near-Death Confession, Time Loop if the implications are thought through, Mutual Pining where the characters have a reasonable basis for believing the other character isn't/can't be interested, Bang or Die, Mission/Case/Heist Fic where the author has actually come up with a canon-worthy plot, Amnesia, Crossover where one side can usefully solve a problem on the other side (and preferably vice versa), Major Character Death that has genuine impact, Fighting Turned Confession so long as it isn't a confession of sexual attraction, Miscommunication where that isn't a synonym for stupidity, Crackfic that makes sense on its own terms, Angst provided that it isn't wangst, Drunken Confession, 5 + 1 (and its numerical variants)
  
• Things that can be done well, but often misfire in fanfic: Love Triangle (hard to resolve in a way that is likely to satisfy), Dark Fic (can be be very effective, especially in an inherently dark fandom), Hurt/Comfort used to strip away a character's pride/defences, Modern Day AU (and pretty much any other AU), Bodyswap, Unhappy Ending
  
• Things that generally take special pleading to get me to like: Friends to Lovers (why aren't people allowed to care for each other without feeling compelled to bang them as a result?), Sex Pollen/love potions/other excuses for porn without plot, Slow Burn where the entire fic consists of pairing two characters off in excruciating slow-motion, most Kinkfic, Genderswap that is no substitute for actual plot, Fluff that is out of character and/or tedious, Porn Without Plot that is just the same generic phrases with random names filled in, Fake/Secretly Dating, Grumpy & Sunshine, And They Were Roommates, Sickfic, Pregnancy Fic, Baby Fic, Soulmate AU, Hurt no Comfort (angst or wangst?), Meet the Family, Holiday Fic where this is a euphemism for American Christmas Fic, Painfully Oblivious, Lovers to Enemies, Enemies to Lovers (not sure which of these two I am less keen on), Idiots in Love, Fantasy AU, Highschool AU, Coffee Shop AU
  
• Things that are an almost-certain turnoff: Mpreg as a kink, Royalty AU, Celebrity AU, ABO, AI-generated fic, X Reader, Bully achieved by making the character OOC
  
• Things that I really don't have any particular view on: Bodyguard, Detective AU, Bookstore AU, Domesticity, Flowershop & Tattoo artist (that's a genre..?), Hanahaki(??), Hitman/Target, College AU, Western AU, Crime AU