How's My Driving | April 2013

[ironwood]

Spring has been sprung! All over the Western hemisphere, flowers are blooming, bunnies are bounding, and the little clickity-clack of rper fingers at keyboards is in the air! To kick off the season in style, it's time for our third HMD here at Tu Shanshu.

How's My Driving?
While each and every character must have an HMD page available, we offer a gamewide HMD once every calendar quarter. This is an opportunity to get together and discuss IC interpretations and portrayals in a respectful, beneficial fashion. In a nutshell, it's a chance to see how we're doing in the grand scheme of things.

There are a few ground rules to cover off before we can start:

• Participation in the quarterly HMD is 100% optional.
  
• Be respectful, anon or not. It's a lot easier to give and receive crit if all parties are making it a discussion of it rather than an argument.
  
• IP logging is off and anonymous commenting is on. You can offer crit signed-in if you like, but the option's there.
  

That's it, that's all!

And, to make things easier, here's a handy-dandy codeset:

<big><b><i>Player Name</i></b></big> <i>Character Name:</i> <i>Canon:</i> <i>User Name:</i> <I>Focus:</i> Optional. Do you have particular concerns about your portrayal that you'd like to be the focus of crit? You can link any threads you'd like a second opinion on here. If you're looking for structural feedback, or would prefer things like grammar not be mentioned, put it here.

Comments

[controlledvariable]

Justine
Character Name: Steph Brown
Canon: DCU
User Name: controlledvariable
Focus: In before "she doesn't even go here". I didn't realize quite how bad my activity had been last month, and I'm really sorry that I haven't been tagging around as much. I've worked out some motivation issues so hopefully that will be fixed this month.

Generally I want to know if I'm still doing an okay job with Steph? This is the longest I've played a character, so I'm not sure if I'm getting into bad habits/delving off course. If anyone has concerns/suggestions/anything wrt general characterization I would definitely love to hear them! Otherwise, any sort of concrit is welcome c:

[saisamour]

Chiqui!
Character Name: Leo Valdez
Canon: Percy Jackson/Heroes of Olympus
User Name: fotia
Focus: IDK lol just if you see anything off in him, fire away!

Character Name: Marius Pontmercy
Canon: Les Miserables
User Name: saisamour
Focus: I know I probably took him from a really difficult canon point, and he's pretty unsociable to begin with, but WHAT THE HELL WHO NEEDS EASY IN THEIR LIFE RIGHT. That said, I'm really concerned as to whether he's too dreamy/indifferent/happy/dumb, or, alternatively, if I'm not doing it enough. ALSO, since he's pretty new, if there are any concerns about him/his personality/just what I'm doing with/to him in general that you think might pop up in the future?

[boselfdestruct]

Ricky
Character Name: Donatello
Canon: TMNT 2012
User Name: boselfdestruct
Focus: I've been having trouble clicking with him, so if you've noticed anything off with his characterization especially, I'd love to hear it :)

[mrsarcastic003]

Zoë
Character Name: Tim Drake
Canon: DC Comics Preboot
User Name: mrsarcsatic003
Focus: Anything really. I know I need to get him out more, and I'm concerned that I'm so busy with life that he slips here, because I don't have all the time I'd like to have him stalk all the things.

But really any crit on him is good! I've been playing him for a long time in various games, so it's easy for his voice to slip and me not to notice.

[superoverachiever]

Jo
Character Name: Ava Ayala
Canon: Ultimate Spider-Man
User Name: superoverachiever
Focus: Feedback on voice and activity would be appreciated

I am not sure how many people are actually familiar with her canon, but pretty much my concern as far as voice goes is capturing her extreme straightforwardness without relying on stereotypes. Basically I am worried about slipping too much into 'generic no-nonsense character' instead of Ava Ayala.

The other thing I'd like feedback on is activity! Has it been easy to get CR with her, that kind of thing.

[flamingshortshorts]

I have really enjoyed everything I've seen so far with Ava and I think you're on the right track with her. But in regards to the question about avoiding making her too generic, maybe remember to add in her conversational quirks? Body language, fillers, etc. She has a habit of rolling her hands, hand on her hips, crossing her arms, pointing at people when she's talking, also she mutters a bit, but not really in a way that implies she's trying to actually avoid people hearing what she's saying.

[brokenweapon]

Zed
Character Name: Jason Bourne
Canon: Bourne Trilogy (movies)
User Name: brokenweapon
Focus: Jason's been kind of an awkward turtle which I know is most likely my fault because I am even worse at human interaction than he is. But I figured out why I'm having issues playing him and am going to be working to correcting them with the landfall event and all. Anyway...thoughts?

jason

[zerotoawesome]

jason

Character Name: santo vaccarro
Canon: marvel 616
User Name: zerotoawesome

Character Name: e. aster bunnymund
Canon: rise of the guardians
User Name: springsforward

Focus:
-Real life has been kicking my ass lately, and I feel like I've let occasional threads fall by the wayside unintentionally. I apologize for that.
-Bunnymund is brand new, and I've been absolutely terrified to do too much with him. That's been getting better lately, especially with his latest post going up, but I still welcome any crit or advice for him.

[wholenewstory]

Sage
Character Name: Cassandra Cain
Canon: DC Comics
User Name: wholenewstory
Focus: Is her voice true to canon? Is she engaging? Does her development make sense?

I know I'm going to try and get her out more, I've definitely been wavering on that front.

[liugan]

Take
Character Name: Loki Laufeyson
Canon: MCU
User Name: liugan
Focus: Right now I know my biggest struggle is with activity. A lot of work/life things are going on so I've been extremely slow with my tagging here, and I do apologize for that. I'm trying to encourage myself into branching out and tagging new entries, and I really will do my best to be delightfully mischievous for you all in the near future. If there's absolutely anything you think I need to work on thus far, please let me know and I will try my very best.

[alpha_squad_leader]

Eric
Character Name: Victor Borkowski (Anole)
Canon: Marvel: X-Men (616)
User Name: alpha_squad_leader
Focus: I've got to get Victor tagging out more. And I know I've been making a bit more typos lately so I'm working on fixing that up. Nothing else specific.

[idealisme]

Anne
Character Name: Enjolras
Canon: Les Miserables
User Name: idealisme
Focus: This is my first month playing Enjolras so I would appreciate feedback about my characterisation in particular and everything else in general.

K8

[mycompromise]

K8
Character Name: Ratonhnhaké:ton (Connor Idon'tneedmydad'slastname)
Canon: Assassin's Creed III
User Name: mycompromise
Focus: Getting more active, and a better handle on his voice.

Character Name: Johanna Mason
Canon: The Hunger Games
User Name: district7
Focus: IDEK

[dracobin]

Ireny
Character Name: Temeraire
Canon: Temeraire
User Name: dracobin
Focus: This is my first time playing Temrer, so I'm still getting used to his odd speech patterns! Any feedback regarding that in particular would be really appreciated, since a lot of his personality is conveyed through the way he talks. Also, I worry sometimes that I'm making him too naive, and I'm always looking for opportunities for him to show off his book-smarts, I guess!

[duelkatana]

Angel
Character Name: Leonardo
Canon: TMNT (2003)
User Name: duelkatana
Focus: I'm usually fairly confident when it comes to characterization and/or voice, but feedback in these areas is always appreciated! Another concern I often have is making tags engaging despite Leo's somewhat taciturn nature. But my biggest focus right now is STILL getting Leo out there interacting with others; it's something I've been struggling with pretty much since I apped him in, and while I feel like I'm still making gradual progress, it's a very slow and painful road.

Personal HMD has anon and screened comments enabled, if you'd prefer to use that instead!

[notamachine]

Boots
Character Name: Dean Winchester
Canon: Supernatural
User Name: notamachine

[gaudy]

Cris
Character Name: Fenris
Canon: Dragon Age 2
User Name: gaudy
Focus: Fenris is brand new, but I figured I would slap this up just in case! Feel free to hit me with anything.

[fatedchaos]

Hey there!

I've noticed that while I think you have Fenris's voice down pretty well, there are a few things that you could keep in mind. This is just from first impressions after reading through his entry.

I've noticed you used far more contractions with Fenris than necessary. Not that he never uses them in his speech, but Fenris is a very careful speaker. He likes to speak clearly and emphasize his words somewhat, so he's more likely to say "I am" than "I'm", "they are" than "they're", etc.

Another thing I noticed was this tendency to have him hesitate or trip over his words, most notable in his thread with Molly. He does get flustered, especially if Hawke is piling compliments onto him, but he is usually a pretty collected and eloquent speaker unless there are slavers around, because fuck those guys. Like I said earlier, he chooses his words carefully, so I don't think he'd be that hesitant or flustered so easily.

Jen - Iorveth

[aenseidhe]

JEN
Character Name: Iorveth
Canon: The Witcher
User Name: aenseidhe
Focus: Shit, idek. Is he being hateful enough? Too hateful? I worry a little that I make him have civil conversations too often with humans, but I kind of justify that he's gotten used to them being the only ones around besides npcs, idk. BASICALLY I WANT TO MAKE EXCUSES TO STILL HAVE CR 8| But yeah, should he be more of a dick, less, idek.

Re: Jen - Iorveth

[notamachine]

PERSONALLY i think he's a pretty perfect dick. I mean sure, he's a HUGE ASSHOLE to Dean but then again Dean hasn't exactly been huggy bear to him SO THERE IS THAT. Plus, it's not like he's canonically incapable of having civil conversations with humans it's just...not...a thing he does if he doesn't have to.....??????????? SO YEAH, I think it works out pretty well so far (for me)

[sophos]

Tomato
Character Name: Annabeth Chase
Canon: Heroes of Olympus
User Name: sophos
Focus: lmfao is being too all over the place a thing idek 8(a

Character Name: Peggy Carter
Canon: MCU
User Name: shootingshields
Focus: Her activity's a little lower than I'd like it to be this last month, but I'm trying to swing back!!

Both have anon enabled HMD posts up in their journals if preferred!

Kiki

[trainwrecked]

Kiki
Character Name: Bucky Barnes
Canon: Marvel Cinematic Universe
User Name: trainwrecked | HMD
Focus: Anything.

Character Name: Damian Wayne
Canon: Detective Comics Universe | Batman
User Name: demon_brat | HMD
Focus: Again, anything.

[andaway]

Al
Character Name: Superman / Clark Kent
Canon: DC Comics
User Name: andaway
Focus: As always, sometimes I fear I'm pushing the man-child part of him too much and sometimes I fear I'm not doing it enough. He's a very sarcastic man and jokes around a lot but he also knows how to get serious... and it's hard to pinpoint where to draw the line with so many writers. That's my main worry but honestly any crit is welcome and loved and I have HMD in my journal too for those who would rather anon!

[wherethestoryis]

Clark's probably the character besides mine I know best, so a quick note before I run off to Real Life: thread-stalking, I've seen a ton of 'Kal gets serious' stuff lately and you're hitting that just fine.

If I had to find fault, I think it would be that while you do regular-adult-guy aspects (both Kal and Clark personas), the sarcasm and irony are less apparent. Remember how he is in the newsroom and on the reporting job. I'd say go back through scans and any you really like for the snark, try to emulate.

[tactile_telekinesis]

Zak
Character Name: Kon-El/Superboy
Canon: DC Comics
User Name: tactile_telekinesis
Focus: I don't feel like I'm hitting it so well with his voice. I've had him CU'd but I never felt like he'd accept who he saw as being him. I'm trying to stay away from sad and broody because that's not him. He's seen a lot on the turtle but I hope I'm getting across that it might be bad, but he's coping fine.

Got a journal HMD as well.

[justlittle]

Chris
Character Name: Bean
Canon: Enderverse
User Name: justlittle
Focus: Bean is forever smarter than I am, with an eidetic memory and lightning quick analysis skills. If there's anything I missed you think Bean would have picked up on, please let me know.

[traumatizing]

Player Name
Character Name: Terrance Ward (personal HMD)
Canon: Marvel 616
User Name: traumatizing
Focus: I'm really concerned with the consistency of his voice? I don't know how many people have read Initiative, but after he becomes a counsellor the way he talks completely changes. That and the fact you never see him talking to people casually in canon makes me worry about if the way I have him speak to people in game is... Right.

Also I'm sort of in a rut re: what to actually do with him and junk so. Yeah. /throws hands in the air

Character Name: Reno (personal HMD)
Canon: Final Fantasy VII
User Name: idkmybffpyramid
Focus: I'm trying to branch him out and getting him talking to people, but it's been a while since I played him and I guess I'm a little iffy there. There isn't much to say really, being away from the game for a month has kind of thrown me wrt what to do with him so I guess I'mma just be working on that for now.

As a general point, I was on hiatus for pretty much all of March and I've pretty much called it quits on all my old threads because they were making me too anxious to start new things. I've also made it my personal mission to improve my tagging speed this month, though my schedule is quite hectic so we'll see how that goes.

[walkingwmd]

Gingey
Character Name: Jenny Takeda
Canon: Marvel 616
User Name: walkingwmd
Focus: I seem to always feel like I'm taking her genre savvy/pop culture jokes too far or not far enough, so I'd love feedback on that.

Just a note, I'm incredibly sorry for pretty much disappearing for the entire latter half of March out of nowhere, I talked about it on plurk a good deal but a lot of shit happened IRL pretty unexpectedly. I'll probably be a bit on the slow side this month because of that stuff but I do intend to be around. I know I just got here and I can't apologize enough for this happening so early on.

Alexis | Kara Zor-el

[notdreaming]

Alexis
Character Name: Kara Zor-el
Canon: DC Comics Reboot
User Name: notdreaming
Focus: Kara's had a fair bit of development since she's been here mostly due to the nature of her experience being the polar opposite of her experiences in comics. I'm less concerned about accuracy to canon (which at this point would be questionable at best) and more concerned about how natural her progression seems. Also if there are any sorts of details you'd like to see more of in my tags, I'm always trying to improve on that front.