Title: Less Than Zero
Author: Kenchi618
Rating: Mature
Genre: Action
Status: WIP, regular updates
Published: May 20, 2014
Updated: Apr 10, 2016
Chapters: 18 - Words: 223,204
Fandom: DC Superheroes
Pairings: OC/still unclear (99% female)
Summary: It's one thing to enter the world of heroes and villains, it's another thing entirely to find your way back out again. That's a bitter truth to swallow when you want no part of the life to begin with. A hasty decision from a young man with his back against the wall sends him down a path of which there is no return. OC main character.
Link: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10362076/1/Less-Than-Zero

At first the OC badge and my little knowledge of the fandom kept me wary, but because of the quality (and quantity) I quickly started to enjoy it. I have to admit, that the DC Wikia is my constant companion, but I can get over that. The protagonist is actually relatable even likable and the other characters are, as far as I can tell, spot on.

Most people will be familiar with Kenchi's writing given Great Clan Days, so give it a try.

 

So yeah, I've been reading this because I'm a big fan of the first couple hundred thousand words of anything Kenchi writes.

One of the things I really like about this is that it's about an OC which helps me, as someone who doesn't particularly follow comics, understand and keep up with the story more because the author doesn't just assume that I know everything about the main character.

That said, I do know everything about the main character. Because it's Gray Fox. Kenchi pretty much just straight ripped the cyborg ninja out of metal gear and shoved him into DC- which I have no real problem with. Besides, the personality of Kenchi's OC is significantly different from Gray Fox's so there's that. I guarantee that he'll be getting a high-frequency blade at some point though.

 

While we're reccing kenichi fics do you think it's time we put his bio up for review? It's got a solid 80,000 words or so in there with enough plot to keep people interested.

 

I actually looked through it. He wrote a bit of it, and the rest is quotes and Man Law. You wanna review Man Law?

 

I know nothing about DC, other than the characters important enough to have movies made about them.

I'm interested so far. There are a few plot points that leave me with questions, but it's early enough that they could be easily explained somehow.

The main character unfortunately isn't the brightest bulb in the bunch, but he feels fairly realistic.

4/5 so far, with the potential to go either up or way down.

 

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10362076/13/Less-Than-Zero

Story just updated, now at chapter 13, over 169.000 words and still very enjoyable.

 

Hopefully, he's not going for the harem route. I feel the vibes already from Kara, Batgirl and Ravager.

 

That's pretty normal for a Kenichi618 story. No guarantees that it will happen, but those vibes are present in a lot of his stories.

 

That's what rubbed me the wrong way, too. Apart from the Ravager interactions, which I enjoy, the others feel too smooth, too perfect for an Average Joe, who the protagonist is supposed to be.

 

I hadn't realized this fic was getting any love at all and I'm glad it is. I've long since given up reccing new Kenchi stuff here no matter how much I like it so thanks for that.

It's been great from start to finish for me and I could list a lot of things but the one I think would make the most impact is admitting that I've been able to go back and re-read this story and not get burnt out on it. I really can't say that about his old stuff.

Anyway if you like DC and are ok with the inner monologue that comes with the DC universe I think you'll enjoy this.

 

Just read all of what's out of this fic (ch 18) in a fit of boredom.

It's pretty decent. Not great - the harem vibes are a turn-off, and the prose is workmanlike and kind of choppy. The banter could use work, too.
I guess there are no glaring flaws, but on the other hand I can't quite pin down anything it does especially well.

If I had to grade it I'd say it's definite 3.5/5 to 4/5 material - good, but nothing exceptional. I'll be following it to see where it goes.

 

This is actually my favourite work from Kenchi. He moves from strength to strength, characterisations are enjoyable and lead to some great dialogue, world building is excellent. Kenchi really has a strong understanding of the DC Universe and how all the characters interrelate.

Null's progression as a character has been utterly enthralling to witness unfold. From his personality and motivations to the steady development of his powers. He has a really awesome skill set that isn't OP and has been developing realistically. At first Null would try to catch bullets with his magnetic powers but couldn't because they were moving to fast (and wound up shot), now he has figured out how to create small magnetic fields that can halt bullets. He's discovering his powers by himself and doesn't have anyone to teach him, so it's quite exciting to see him unveil them in the heat of the moment. Kenchi really has been masterful in his execution of this story.

People have been complaining about harem vibes, but at the moment it's merely multiple potential love interests. It's only now after 19 chapters that one of the love interests have eventuated to something more than sexual tension. There is so far three different girls he could pursue, I don't understand the complaints about what may potentially, but probably won't, happen. I flirt with more than three girls in my life, doesn't mean I'm about to start a harem any time soon. Not grounds in my opinion to lower the score.

Max is a great character. He strikes this lovely middle ground between the heroes and villains. He doesn't want to cause anyone harm but he won't necessarily go out of his way to help random people who wouldn't reciprocate the sentiment. He's a realistic and charismatic teenager. Add in Kenchi's humour and you've got an entertaining character to put it mildly.

I believe this to be a great story, the culmination of Kenchi's experience as a writer that deserves to be read.

 

The harem vibes are likely due to Kenchi's writing tendencies applied as a filter to the story. By itself it wouldn't be anything, but given his past stories ... eh.

That said, it never really bothered me. This is probably one of my favorite works of his. It's always an enjoyable update, even if he's slowed down now that he's got a job.

 

I agree this is by far Kenchi's best work. There's a kind of corniness to his other stuff that this story avoids.

 

I think what makes this more enjoyable is that it is an original character, he writes a certain main character archetype and it can rub us the wrong way when it is applied to an established character , but works fine when it is an OC.

 

He also writes all his characters with modern tones and mannerisms. Naruto or whatever anime character usually sounds like a modern american teenager instead of from whatever anime they're from.

 

So this updated recently. Im still a big fan, and I'd rank it probably as my favorite Kenchi fic- but im not sure how I feel about the most recent chapter.

Spoiler

so they know Max is Null. And Max knows that Barbara is Batgirl and has seen Tim's face even if he has no idea who that is. And it's not really treated as that big of a deal. I don't know, I might have to reread it and see if on a second go around I have more of an idea what's going on.