You can't really compare them. Naruto is a published, heavily advertised manga and anime that has been running for years, for over a decade. It also has a shitton of games. So, on ff.net alone, it has ca 399 000 fics. When I last checked around 2-3 weeks ago, it had roughly 398 000. A year ago it had around 377 000 fics. So, in that time, it got around 1000/21 000 fics. Just on ff.net.

Worm had 386. 2-3 weeks ago, it had 327. A year ago it had 167 fics.

So, yeah, on sheer volume alone, only HP has more.

That said, Worm fanfics did pick up some momentum. It doubled in a year and then got around 50 fics in 2 weeks. Plus however many are on SB and SV, even if a lot of them retreat the same ground, what with the locker scene, the Wards scenes, the bully comeuppance scene, the Lung fight and so on.

It doesn't do these more, mind you. As said before, you get repetition in all fandoms. God knows how often I have read the Bell Test or the Hogwarts Sorting. But others just have a lot more stories, so, you also get way more fics who do not do the same, regardless of quality. With Worm, that is just more noticeable because of the smaller story pool and especially if you are really into Worm and have probably read around 80% of all Worm fanfics.

 

I think the reason why Worm feels bad as a fandom is a combination of us having a lower bar to giving fics a go, as well as there being a lot of fics that are readable enough for us to read, but not good enough for us to respect. In other fandoms the bar is set high enough that we don't even consider reading most of the fics there unless they do something really unique, or have absolutely fantastic writing.

Haven't posted here in a few weeks, so I'll catch up on some of the reccs...

This is actually great. It takes a bunch of tropes that are almost always done awfully and flips them on their head, doing a whole lot of cool stuff.

Expanding a bit on the summary without revealing too many important spoilers, Astrid's father is a former E88 assassin who is this cross between Coil, Kaiser and Accord. He seems to actually love his daughter, but this is warped by his view of the world and the fact he's been training her (and her brother) since birth for one purpose - to kill Kaiser.

The first arc is initially a bit hard to get into, since it focuses on scenes of them training with Astrid's new powers. It isn't just a "insert angsty abuse ridden back story" arc. It ends up being pretty important, as it shows a lot more about her father and brother's psyche, and Astrid's relationship with them. And it's interesting. Astrid largely seems to have adopted a similar view of the world from her father (minus the racism). Her relationship with her brother is great too - absolutely hating each other, but also having this sort of comradeship knowing that they're going through the same hell together.

Spoiler

We all know the "joining the Wards" trope is always shit. But this fic is the first I've seen that actually makes it interesting. Cockblocker's usual teasing gags are met with absolutely hostility from someone who has been brought up in a more regimented environment. All the coddling that appears in the Wards just seems to baffle her. She struggles to even maintain normal interactions, because she just fundamentally cannot understand them.

The fight with Sophia was fantastic.

It still feels like we're in the early stages and I'm not sure whether plot is going, but this could definitely be Library worthy. Even if it's a bit slow to start, I would recommend people giving it a go.

Stop Watch is mildly entertaining, but that's about it so far. It's certainly done a lot of very unique and strange things, and so far I'm not really sure why. It will be interesting to see how all the events and Taylor's actions so far come together in the structure of the story, because so far they feel a bit all over the place. But VereorNox may pull something off, so we'll see.

I do like that Taylor's stance on getting healed was actually addressed in a mature way. It certainly makes it clear that Taylor's narrative is not always 'right' and she's a flawed character, despite the sort of Hero thing she's trying to go for.

Not sure whether I commented earlier in this thread, but I actually really enjoy Spirit of Nature. A bit cheesy at times perhaps, but it was something different and refreshing.

A lot of fics that don't follow the "norm" often struggle to get a reader base for some reason. Some of the best fanfics I've ever read seem to be woefully low on reviews, and that's because they try to do something that fandom doesn't usually do and people just can't be bothered giving it a proper go. It's a shame really.

Really liked this fic. Enough that I was going to Library recc it, but Nemrut beat me.

Started off seeming like a silly crack fic, but ended up evolving in interesting ways (though still not something you can really take seriously). Not library quality or anything like that and given it's length, a but of a slog. But if you're bored, mildly entertaining and has some cool stuff here and there. Definitely shipping Freakshow/Alexandria.

 

I would argue that the general level of quality is, what i would call, "aggressively mediocre." It's not too terrible but neither is the quality something to recommend. Just like the ZnT phase, lots of ideas/fics that just weren't very good.

What's funny is that for every Worm fic that gets a separate thread on SB, I would wager there's dozens more stories within the "fic idea, recc, discussion" thread.

The latter part is where a lot of stories just pop up and then fade away simply because well... we already know how Worm ends. How is that compatible with yours? It isnt? Oh shit you better have an explanation for that.

and its tough, imo. I've got ideas some prototype chapters but it is tough to realize "oh fuck I don't have an end game."

 

I generally think that Worm both benefits and suffers from being primarily linked to spacebattles. From my experience on the site it has a much higher floor than FFN, not that that's hard, but due to the single source there are a lot of elements that are unduly common. There are the same proportional amount of good stories, it's just that there are far fewer in real terms and they don't stick out as well from the sea of average rehashes.

 

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11772042/1/The-Rise-of-One

This one is pretty good. I'm putting it as 'almost' because it's only 30k words. The tension and survival-drama presented so far is great.

 

Yeah, same.

The problem is that I have no idea where it's going. It doesn't seem to be a crossover, but it almost feels like it's going to be. I don't know. I like what's here, but it's too early to rate.

 

Wow, this is the exact concept that Nemrut and I have discussed numerous times. Really happy to finally see an attempt at it (Spirit of Nature is the only other fic that sort of attempted it).

Since Chime didn't post the summary:

Not sure what purpose Taylor's new bullying/torture backstory serves, or whether it was really necessary. Feels a bit pointless when everything else is basically exactly the same as canon.

It explores a lot of what I really wished canon did after Taylor joined the Wards. That is, her interaction with the Brockton Bay Wards with their history of hostility and mutual respect too.

Looking forward to seeing where this goes.

Here's another fic of a story that I could've sworn was recommended on here, but couldn't find it:

One Sided Rival by Discreet

It's a short, completed, post-Worm character piece based around Sophia, with Imp being the other main character.

It's done reasonably well and pretty cool way of exploring the post-Worm world.

 

I have no idea where it's going. Right now the character interaction stuff is just the right tension I've been looking for. It could go anywhere at this point, however.

I get the feeling they won't be getting to civilization as they know it, any time soon.

 

https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/umbram-mortis-worm-au.374124/

Wanted to leave this here. Kind of hard to give a short summary and the author hasn't posted one, so I think you just have to read it. It's not very long, but I like the premise and I am looking forward to the resolution in the end.

Probably not Library material since there are some grammar problems and other stuff, but I thought it is a good quick read.

 

A Show of Force, what's the main plot? Both the summary and your thoughts are very vague.

 

Has El Ahrairah been recced? Taylor triggers as a Thinker as opposed to a Master and is recruited into Cauldron by Contessa. She helps refine power vials and joins the Protectorate. I rather like it.

 

I read up to the Lisa interlude, which felt like a natural end point to the story. I also got the sense that Taylor would be spending more of her time telling teams of capes how they sucked at using their powers, and that wasn't a story I wanted to read. Did that happen, or was my gut instinct wrong on this one?

 

Yes, that happens, and yes, your gut instinct was wrong.

 

I also like The Reaping. Taylor triggers with a power much like Glaistig Uaine, and starts her cape career by accidentally killing Sophia after school.

 

Her power is quite strong, but it has some real trade offs, and the reactions from the heroes to it make me confident it won't be a curbstomp fic with no real conflict.