KingRed
12-19-2005, 06:18 AM
I took some time to talk with our very own os pr fan to discuss his blockbuster fanfic . . . Power Rangers:Generations; which, since its debut has barely unseen in the Fanfic of the Month polls and well recieved by the fandom. Well . . . here's what he had to say.
King Red: Let's start. If we don't finish, we'll continue later.
Os prfan: Alright. You may fire when ready.
King Red: Matt . . . why don't you tell us a little about yourself. General stuff.
Os prfan: Alright. I'm a proud Canadian, living in the province of Ontario, in the hockey capital of the world (Toronto, or thereabouts). I've got aspirations for a career either in music or as an author primarily, though I'm kind of thinking of getting in to teaching for some strange reason. I'm an active guy. I love my team sports: hockey, mostly, though I dabble in basketball and baseball. I enjoy singing and performing with my still-in-progress band (or on my own) and just generally having a good time.
King Red: So . . .how did Power Rangers lure you into their embrace?
Os prfan: Heh. I got in with Day of the Dumpster way back when. I just remember it being so cool to watch normal kids becoming these larger than life superheroes. It made me want to imitate them. Monkey see, monkey do, I suppose. I would always wind up playing Tommy, oddly enough. <_< >_> Post Green With Evil, of course.
King Red: Of course. So, between your fic and the show, you are a die hard Tommy worshipper?
Os prfan: You would think so, wouldn't you? I'm actually not. I don't worship at the Altar of Oliver, nor do I praise his greatness. To be honest, I don't think I really have a favourite ranger, but Tommy was always cool to me from the start for being the sixth ranger. I kind of got pissed off at him a little when he became the White Ranger and Jason got shafted in terms of the leadership of the team. He seemed really underdeveloped in Zeo (even with the arrowhead story arc), and Turbo....well, I'm just not going to get into Turbo.
As for the story, I really chose him out of necessity. I needed a ranger with ties not only to multiple past ranger teams, but also to the villain (whose identity I won't reveal here). Tommy seemed the logical choice in that respect.
King Red: How was it starting PR:Generations for the first time in Tommy's point of view?
Os prfan: It was kind of strange, to be honest. It was my first foray into writing in the Power Rangers universe. Granted, I had written stories and such before, both fanfiction and otherwise, but I was a little more aware of the environment I would be releasing it into. I mean, Power Rangers has one of the most loyal fan bases a show of its type can possibly have. It can seem a little daunting. Plus, the fact that I didn't know where the hell I'd be going with it didn't help much either.
King Red: Looking back, how does the direction feel now?
Os prfan: I guess it feels like I had a master plan all along, doesn't it? *looks, rather
King Red: Yes. And an interesting plan. How did PR:Generations came to be? How was it born?
Os prfan: Well, although I came up with a very basic concept of it around January of this year (2005), this nagging desire to create a Power Rangers story under this name had been lingering for years. My first attempt at it, as I recall, was your typical 'new evil vs same rangers' story. It was actually rather poorly written, if memory serves. I guess what really inspired me the most was seeing Tommy return in Dino Thunder. Something just clicked in my brain. I just thought "This might be the right time to try again". So I did, and here we are.
King Red: How about the quest for the armor and the links back to Return of the Green Ranger?
Os prfan: Those are a little easier to explain. The inspiration for the armor came from watching the first Fatal Fury movie. As for the link back to Return of the Green Ranger, well I always wondered what Tom (the clone) did to the Dragonzord coin and Dragon Dagger back in colonial Angel Grove. Surely he would've kept it safe, and surely he would have left a way for someone to regain access to it if the circumstances were dire enough. The cogs began to spin, and eventually that twisted into "what if some evil force got a hold of them?" It was something that not many authors, to my knowledge anyway, have attempted in the fandom, so I figured what the hell.
King Red: Now, while this story is through Tommy's eyes, other Rangers appear in this story. What made you bring in all these Rangers?
Os prfan: Come on. Tommy may be Jeebus to some people, but there's no way in hell that he'd be able to deal with something like this on his own. Bringing in active or semi-active (meaning their powers are still useable, even if only temporary) rangers seemed like the right choice, plus it gives some of the old school fans a reason to want to read.
King Red: You also brought in the Dino Thunder team. How did it feel the first time you had the Dino Thunder team with some of the original Rangers?
Os prfan: It didn't feel as awkward as I thought it would be. As soon as I had Zack crack the joke about their secret identities it started to feel natural. Plus I always thought it would be interesting to see how the older rangers would interact with the new kids on the block. Especially with Ethan, considering how much of a fanboy he is.
King Red: Now . . . The Green Ranger. You brought in a non-Ranger, Ryan from VR Troopers. How did that decision come about? And how did you gave birth to his new personality?
Os prfan: Well, I had been tossing around ideas for a while regarding who should take up the mantle. I went through everyone possible in the Power Rangers universe, from David Trueheart to Skull. Eventually, I realized that using a canon Power Rangers character just wouldn't work. I came to terms with that, and was starting to create a new character for it, when someone (you, if I'm not mistaken) suggested I use Ryan. The more I thought about it, the more it began to make sense. Why create a brand new character when there's a perfectly suitable one already available and that people are at least somewhat familiar with? Plus, by using Ryan I was able to take advantage of the conflict that I've alluded to between the now deceased Professor Horatio Hart, Ryan and J.B. It made for a much better sense of dramatic tension, in my opinion. As for his new personality, I tried not to go too over the top. Even though it was so completely opposite to what we saw of him on VR Troopers, I wanted people understand the motivations behind his actions when the cause of his drastic personality change is revealed (which hasn't happened yet).
King Red: When Ryan, JB and Tommy were all together for the first time, how did you feel?
Os prfan: I kind of felt giddy. I can't explain, though, because it will spoil a major plot point coming up in the future, but it represents one of those pure fanboy moments. You'll understand when you see it.
King Red: When and how was Draeph born?
Os prfan: Well I needed a general for my big bad. I was kind of inspired by the Magna Defender in a way, because I wanted someone who was honourable and loyal to such an evil master, but who still had redeemable qualities. His physical description (his skin consisting of a black, stone-like material) came as a spur of the moment thing. As for his name, I spawned a couple dozen names from a fantasy name generator that I use sometimes to give myself ideas. I altered one of the names I found there and Draeph was born. The main motivation in creating him was to come up with an adversary who was on a par with Tommy. I got really sick and tired of all of these supposed all-powerful generals getting their asses handed to them by Tommy. It was just getting ridiculous.
King Red: You recently wrote outside of Tommy's perspective. How did that feel?
Os prfan: I was a little bit wary of doing it at first, to be honest. I was afraid that the pace would suffer if I strayed from Tommy's POV for too long. Luckily, when all was said and done it seemed to work out alright, and people didn't have much of a problem with it. So it worked out for the best, it seems.
King Red: Okay. What was your inspiration behind our mysterious Gold hero?
Os prfan: Ahh, you must be referring to Demon Hunter.
King Red: yep. What was the inspiration with Demon Hunter and what is and will be his role in the story?
Os prfan: Well, I was browsing through information on each of the pre-Abaranger Sentai seasons that the appropriate Power Rangers seasons were based on, trying to see if there were any characters that I could use, monsters or otherwise. When looking through GoGoV, I saw Demon Hunter (from the GoGoV movie). I was in need of a mercenary as a bit of a wild card. Someone who wasn't necessarily working with the rangers, but who was working towards the same goal for reasons of his own. He will be a strong ally in the fight to come, but I do have a few twists prepared, to keep the readers on their toes.
King Red: Who has been your favorite character to write?
Os prfan: I'd probably say the DT kids. Because this takes place so early in DT, I have the freedom to play around with them a little. We all know where they're headed, character-wise, so I'm able to play around within those boundaries to develop them a little more. Plus they're the easiest way to inject some comedy into a story that has a pretty serious feel to it.
King Red: Any other appearance we can be expecting?
Os prfan: Well, I don't want to spoil anything, but I will say that we're going to have a fairly large group of past allies showing up in the next chapter. *thinks* Nine, if I recall correctly.
King Red: Whoa. That's a lot of past allies. Not a single hint to one or two of them?
Os prfan: I meant to say ten, actually. As for hints, well I dropped fairly obvious hints at the identities of two of them in the last chapter, and the last paragraph of that chapter pretty much gives away the identities of the larger group of 7. As for the last, I'm going to keep him/her a secret.
King Red: did you have any other projects planned besides PR:Generations?
Os prfan: Well, I have the C2D Anthology story sitting around collecting dust. I've had ideas for a couple one-shots floating around my head, but I haven't had time to make anything of them.
King Red: Okay. Okay. Is there anything you wanted to say to your readers?
Os prfan: Just to keep reading and not hate me too much for the long gaps between updates. Heh.
King Red: Well, thank you very much.
King Red: Let's start. If we don't finish, we'll continue later.
Os prfan: Alright. You may fire when ready.
King Red: Matt . . . why don't you tell us a little about yourself. General stuff.
Os prfan: Alright. I'm a proud Canadian, living in the province of Ontario, in the hockey capital of the world (Toronto, or thereabouts). I've got aspirations for a career either in music or as an author primarily, though I'm kind of thinking of getting in to teaching for some strange reason. I'm an active guy. I love my team sports: hockey, mostly, though I dabble in basketball and baseball. I enjoy singing and performing with my still-in-progress band (or on my own) and just generally having a good time.
King Red: So . . .how did Power Rangers lure you into their embrace?
Os prfan: Heh. I got in with Day of the Dumpster way back when. I just remember it being so cool to watch normal kids becoming these larger than life superheroes. It made me want to imitate them. Monkey see, monkey do, I suppose. I would always wind up playing Tommy, oddly enough. <_< >_> Post Green With Evil, of course.
King Red: Of course. So, between your fic and the show, you are a die hard Tommy worshipper?
Os prfan: You would think so, wouldn't you? I'm actually not. I don't worship at the Altar of Oliver, nor do I praise his greatness. To be honest, I don't think I really have a favourite ranger, but Tommy was always cool to me from the start for being the sixth ranger. I kind of got pissed off at him a little when he became the White Ranger and Jason got shafted in terms of the leadership of the team. He seemed really underdeveloped in Zeo (even with the arrowhead story arc), and Turbo....well, I'm just not going to get into Turbo.
As for the story, I really chose him out of necessity. I needed a ranger with ties not only to multiple past ranger teams, but also to the villain (whose identity I won't reveal here). Tommy seemed the logical choice in that respect.
King Red: How was it starting PR:Generations for the first time in Tommy's point of view?
Os prfan: It was kind of strange, to be honest. It was my first foray into writing in the Power Rangers universe. Granted, I had written stories and such before, both fanfiction and otherwise, but I was a little more aware of the environment I would be releasing it into. I mean, Power Rangers has one of the most loyal fan bases a show of its type can possibly have. It can seem a little daunting. Plus, the fact that I didn't know where the hell I'd be going with it didn't help much either.
King Red: Looking back, how does the direction feel now?
Os prfan: I guess it feels like I had a master plan all along, doesn't it? *looks, rather
King Red: Yes. And an interesting plan. How did PR:Generations came to be? How was it born?
Os prfan: Well, although I came up with a very basic concept of it around January of this year (2005), this nagging desire to create a Power Rangers story under this name had been lingering for years. My first attempt at it, as I recall, was your typical 'new evil vs same rangers' story. It was actually rather poorly written, if memory serves. I guess what really inspired me the most was seeing Tommy return in Dino Thunder. Something just clicked in my brain. I just thought "This might be the right time to try again". So I did, and here we are.
King Red: How about the quest for the armor and the links back to Return of the Green Ranger?
Os prfan: Those are a little easier to explain. The inspiration for the armor came from watching the first Fatal Fury movie. As for the link back to Return of the Green Ranger, well I always wondered what Tom (the clone) did to the Dragonzord coin and Dragon Dagger back in colonial Angel Grove. Surely he would've kept it safe, and surely he would have left a way for someone to regain access to it if the circumstances were dire enough. The cogs began to spin, and eventually that twisted into "what if some evil force got a hold of them?" It was something that not many authors, to my knowledge anyway, have attempted in the fandom, so I figured what the hell.
King Red: Now, while this story is through Tommy's eyes, other Rangers appear in this story. What made you bring in all these Rangers?
Os prfan: Come on. Tommy may be Jeebus to some people, but there's no way in hell that he'd be able to deal with something like this on his own. Bringing in active or semi-active (meaning their powers are still useable, even if only temporary) rangers seemed like the right choice, plus it gives some of the old school fans a reason to want to read.
King Red: You also brought in the Dino Thunder team. How did it feel the first time you had the Dino Thunder team with some of the original Rangers?
Os prfan: It didn't feel as awkward as I thought it would be. As soon as I had Zack crack the joke about their secret identities it started to feel natural. Plus I always thought it would be interesting to see how the older rangers would interact with the new kids on the block. Especially with Ethan, considering how much of a fanboy he is.
King Red: Now . . . The Green Ranger. You brought in a non-Ranger, Ryan from VR Troopers. How did that decision come about? And how did you gave birth to his new personality?
Os prfan: Well, I had been tossing around ideas for a while regarding who should take up the mantle. I went through everyone possible in the Power Rangers universe, from David Trueheart to Skull. Eventually, I realized that using a canon Power Rangers character just wouldn't work. I came to terms with that, and was starting to create a new character for it, when someone (you, if I'm not mistaken) suggested I use Ryan. The more I thought about it, the more it began to make sense. Why create a brand new character when there's a perfectly suitable one already available and that people are at least somewhat familiar with? Plus, by using Ryan I was able to take advantage of the conflict that I've alluded to between the now deceased Professor Horatio Hart, Ryan and J.B. It made for a much better sense of dramatic tension, in my opinion. As for his new personality, I tried not to go too over the top. Even though it was so completely opposite to what we saw of him on VR Troopers, I wanted people understand the motivations behind his actions when the cause of his drastic personality change is revealed (which hasn't happened yet).
King Red: When Ryan, JB and Tommy were all together for the first time, how did you feel?
Os prfan: I kind of felt giddy. I can't explain, though, because it will spoil a major plot point coming up in the future, but it represents one of those pure fanboy moments. You'll understand when you see it.
King Red: When and how was Draeph born?
Os prfan: Well I needed a general for my big bad. I was kind of inspired by the Magna Defender in a way, because I wanted someone who was honourable and loyal to such an evil master, but who still had redeemable qualities. His physical description (his skin consisting of a black, stone-like material) came as a spur of the moment thing. As for his name, I spawned a couple dozen names from a fantasy name generator that I use sometimes to give myself ideas. I altered one of the names I found there and Draeph was born. The main motivation in creating him was to come up with an adversary who was on a par with Tommy. I got really sick and tired of all of these supposed all-powerful generals getting their asses handed to them by Tommy. It was just getting ridiculous.
King Red: You recently wrote outside of Tommy's perspective. How did that feel?
Os prfan: I was a little bit wary of doing it at first, to be honest. I was afraid that the pace would suffer if I strayed from Tommy's POV for too long. Luckily, when all was said and done it seemed to work out alright, and people didn't have much of a problem with it. So it worked out for the best, it seems.
King Red: Okay. What was your inspiration behind our mysterious Gold hero?
Os prfan: Ahh, you must be referring to Demon Hunter.
King Red: yep. What was the inspiration with Demon Hunter and what is and will be his role in the story?
Os prfan: Well, I was browsing through information on each of the pre-Abaranger Sentai seasons that the appropriate Power Rangers seasons were based on, trying to see if there were any characters that I could use, monsters or otherwise. When looking through GoGoV, I saw Demon Hunter (from the GoGoV movie). I was in need of a mercenary as a bit of a wild card. Someone who wasn't necessarily working with the rangers, but who was working towards the same goal for reasons of his own. He will be a strong ally in the fight to come, but I do have a few twists prepared, to keep the readers on their toes.
King Red: Who has been your favorite character to write?
Os prfan: I'd probably say the DT kids. Because this takes place so early in DT, I have the freedom to play around with them a little. We all know where they're headed, character-wise, so I'm able to play around within those boundaries to develop them a little more. Plus they're the easiest way to inject some comedy into a story that has a pretty serious feel to it.
King Red: Any other appearance we can be expecting?
Os prfan: Well, I don't want to spoil anything, but I will say that we're going to have a fairly large group of past allies showing up in the next chapter. *thinks* Nine, if I recall correctly.
King Red: Whoa. That's a lot of past allies. Not a single hint to one or two of them?
Os prfan: I meant to say ten, actually. As for hints, well I dropped fairly obvious hints at the identities of two of them in the last chapter, and the last paragraph of that chapter pretty much gives away the identities of the larger group of 7. As for the last, I'm going to keep him/her a secret.
King Red: did you have any other projects planned besides PR:Generations?
Os prfan: Well, I have the C2D Anthology story sitting around collecting dust. I've had ideas for a couple one-shots floating around my head, but I haven't had time to make anything of them.
King Red: Okay. Okay. Is there anything you wanted to say to your readers?
Os prfan: Just to keep reading and not hate me too much for the long gaps between updates. Heh.
King Red: Well, thank you very much.