You'll note I'm a hedger, I almost never will just say "this is true!"
Oh, I'm just the same! In any case, I'd say (see? Adding "I'd say" as a reflex: point proven! :) ) questions of this type don't have a one-fits-all answer; the whole discussion is so very personal that most arguments will be emotional ones. Which makes it a potentially dangerous discussion to have, but also a very valuable one. And you haven't misunderstood a thing - in fact, you may have been understanding some of my questions better than I did myself. ;)
I can find myself in all of your points, really, including the modern take on the trope. I've also been pondering things like the Kinsey scale and that, apart from some exceptions, we're all somewhat bi in the sense that we can be drawn to both sexes, if the circumstances are right, even if we tend to "default" towards one or the other. Still, as you say, that take can have its problems too, because heterosexuality is the generally accepted norm in our society, Kinsey scale or not. But I think it's only natural most of us feel the need to idealize a bit - that's what fanfic is for, no? - and restrictions imposed by our society are the first thing that gets brushed away. As long as it's just escapism and not denial that such restrictions do exist in RL, I personally don't have any problems with it. Of course, it also helps when the universe a pairing is set in is not our own. That's true with the B5 universe, and probably also with your Batman/Superman 'verse: they're futuristic enough that such issues may be viewed entirely differently in that society, and also (with B5 in any case) so heavily dramatized that a little escapism doesn't seem out of place.
I have a similar feeling about not going for the "pretty factor". PWP I can appreciate if the backstory of the pairing (as created either by canon or by the author) is rich enough, but if that is lacking, I'd be giving up really soon. Friendship stories I can enjoy with or without the sexual aspect, even though I have huge soft spot for stories that manage both the friendship and a realistic take on sexuality. That goes for het as well as for slash relationships.
Incidentally - are there really Marcus/Byron fics around ?? Or were you just coming up with the most improbable pairing in the 'verse? *g*
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Oh, I'm just the same! In any case, I'd say (see? Adding "I'd say" as a reflex: point proven! :) ) questions of this type don't have a one-fits-all answer; the whole discussion is so very personal that most arguments will be emotional ones. Which makes it a potentially dangerous discussion to have, but also a very valuable one. And you haven't misunderstood a thing - in fact, you may have been understanding some of my questions better than I did myself. ;)
I can find myself in all of your points, really, including the modern take on the trope. I've also been pondering things like the Kinsey scale and that, apart from some exceptions, we're all somewhat bi in the sense that we can be drawn to both sexes, if the circumstances are right, even if we tend to "default" towards one or the other. Still, as you say, that take can have its problems too, because heterosexuality is the generally accepted norm in our society, Kinsey scale or not. But I think it's only natural most of us feel the need to idealize a bit - that's what fanfic is for, no? - and restrictions imposed by our society are the first thing that gets brushed away. As long as it's just escapism and not denial that such restrictions do exist in RL, I personally don't have any problems with it. Of course, it also helps when the universe a pairing is set in is not our own. That's true with the B5 universe, and probably also with your Batman/Superman 'verse: they're futuristic enough that such issues may be viewed entirely differently in that society, and also (with B5 in any case) so heavily dramatized that a little escapism doesn't seem out of place.
I have a similar feeling about not going for the "pretty factor". PWP I can appreciate if the backstory of the pairing (as created either by canon or by the author) is rich enough, but if that is lacking, I'd be giving up really soon. Friendship stories I can enjoy with or without the sexual aspect, even though I have huge soft spot for stories that manage both the friendship and a realistic take on sexuality. That goes for het as well as for slash relationships.
Incidentally - are there really Marcus/Byron fics around ?? Or were you just coming up with the most improbable pairing in the 'verse? *g*