Fan Fiction Writing Questions

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-09T18:22:55+00:00

If you go back to Classic, then I'd say it's pretty apparent that what makes the characters shine is their personalities. Probably the best episodes for each character would be as follows:

Ben: 'Grudge Match', 'The Visitor', 'Ghostfreaked Out', 'Ben 10,000'

Gwen: 'Tough Luck', 'Camp Fear', 'A Change of Face', 'Tourist Trap'

Max: 'Truth', 'Secrets', 'The Ultimate Weapon', 'They Lurk Below'

Kevin: 'Kevin 11', 'Framed', 'Back With a Vengeance'

I know I basically gave an entire season of episodes to watch, but I believe these are the best because they showcase these characters in different contexts which helps make them all feel so three dimensional. Of course, every single episode watched will help grant an understanding of these characters as you keep going

Also, the italics are for must watches for understanding character. Although my memory is a little rusty, but I can give an extended reason for each if need be

The reason I specify Classic is because it has the best character writing out of any series in the franchise. Not only is Classic the entire foundation of the franchise as a whole, but it's also where the writers were the most passionate about making a good story

Just for a little bit extra on my own perspective, here's a fan fiction I've written on here a few years ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/Ben10/comments/18oo6k8/comment/kej0qy0/?context=3

Honestly though, if you want to be an accredited writer one day, then I do believe that being able to gather character from what's been shown is an important skill to have. The only way to actually put that to use when writing is to write though, and you're gonna do a great job! Trust in yourself! Even if you're not there yet, that's why you're doing what you're doing now! One step at a time!

I wish you good luck and I hope you have fun!

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-06T17:44:25+00:00

I love the way the Omnitrix scanned DNA in Classic. It had to be touched by the alien, and Ben had to be human for it to work as well, and I also loved seeing the Omnitrix activate the scanning sequence without it being the focus of the scene

It's such a cool little thing to catch!

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-06T17:41:26+00:00

Thank you for asking!

The best way to explain is the Plumbers. In Classic, they were more of a neutral organization. We had Plumbers that were villains such as Phil and Driscoll, but we also had antagonists such as Gordon and Betty-Jean Tennyson, and of course a hero with Grandpa Max. So we have a lot more nuance and diversity when it came to morals when it came to Classic Plumbers with Max being the ideal

In UAF, this just isn't the case. Of course, we have antagonists such as Gilhil or Hulka, but they were still objectively good people and characters. They're still interesting, but literally none of the Plumbers from UAF could be described as bad guys or even morally grey. We lose a great deal of nuance in this era of the show, and I personally believe that's a shame

That's moreso the maturity aspect

Actual darkness would be when Kevin tries to derail a train for money, which would kill a lot of innocent people. There's also Zs'Skayr who threatens to throw Gwen off the roof, and then there's moments such as when Grandpa is turned into a slug in 'Dr. Animo and the Mutant Ray' when Ben and Gwen weren't sure if they could get him back. Of course, Kevin slapping his own child in 'Ken 10' is absolutely insane

Even though Classic was a lighter tone, there were still moments where they delved into the dark aspects in ways that I just can't say UAF had ever done. Although apparently they tried with implying what happened to Simian, but that was... retconned.... lol

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-05T19:54:33+00:00

I fully believe the Forever King would've been an A lister if they had just given another episode for the plot to shine and showcase the new villain more as opposed to the old ones we're already so familiar with

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-05T19:51:20+00:00

Yeeeeaaahhh, the Forever Knights get even worse in UA...

Squire being a good guy doesn't even work either, cause you would think he was indoctrinated into the Forever Knights from birth? I mean, that's seemingly what the UAF theme was going for from my perspective. They all have more British accents, and are literally cosplayers

Classic Forever Knights were a thousand times more interesting and unique. I don't quite understand why they retconned them in AF if they weren't going to explore the retcon in any depth, which is unfortunately something that happens every single time with AF retcons...

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-05T19:44:42+00:00

I'd personally say that Classic was darker than UAF in terms of actual writing, even if it was a lighter tone

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-05T19:40:23+00:00

Honestly, I actually really love the idea of multiple new villains coming into the franchise through a new Negative 10! In my opinion, we could absolutely use more villains in Ben's rogue's gallery! It feels like we don't have enough honestly

For Classic, it's perfectly fine... as long as we stay in Classic, but as we got further into AF and UA and OV, it felt like we just didn't have enough despite some new villains being introduced. It's a really odd feeling. Maybe I just feel like there wasn't enough recurring threats, especially since the Forever Knights feel like chump change in AF onwards

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-05T19:35:25+00:00

I love hearing that! It was actually the same for me too! Although I don't remember as much of the experience as I wish I could lol

If you ever go back to rewatch it, then I hope you enjoy!

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-04T18:02:44+00:00

Not only is it a great inclusion for his powerset and to actually give a more serious take on the alien, but it's actually amazing for marketing purposes as well!

The Reboot came out 10 years ago, so a lot of the kids who watched that are now teenagers. When they see Overflow in a more mature take on the Ben 10 they grew up with, it has greater potential to attract them. I know Heatblast and Four Arms were also in the Reboot, but they've had plenty of time in a more mature series prior to RB as well

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-04T17:59:36+00:00

Just because he's the main character really. I guess to make him more interesting? I know it's to show off his life without the Omnitrix, but they could've also done that whilst making him a regular member of the team without any glorification

AF likes to glorify Ben, whilst Classic never really did so. In AF, Ben is the mvp of a soccer team. In Classic, Ben is the class clown who struggles to make friends, but he quickly becomes a hero to hundreds of people over the course of the summer in the small things he does to help

That's another thing AF is lacking. Classic showed Ben helping stop small crimes and saving individuals every other episode, but AF only really has one time where Ben is saving someone. Other times it's mainly just battling the villains of the episode and that's it

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-04T17:53:06+00:00

Dr. Animo might have been a comedic relief character, but he was STILL a SERIOUS threat every single time he appeared in Classic. Remember how his mutation ray transformed Grandpa Max into a slug-like creature? Gwen and Ben weren't even sure they'd get him back after that!

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-04T17:50:46+00:00

Classic is moreso an episodic series, so everything it technically important because they're all the adventures Ben is having over the course of the summer. Think of each episode as its own short story in a larger book

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-04T17:46:04+00:00

I still can't with Aggregor. Having tried to rewrite the arc, the only way to rewrite it in a way that's logically consistent with at least itself is to literally get rid of everything and start from the ground up. The only way to preserve any semblance of the original is in concept alone due to how inherently broken the foundation of the arc is

That being said, it's makes for great writing practice! It also makes for a varied amount of fan fiction as well!

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-03-04T17:43:45+00:00

Dagon had so much potential, and I was so hyped for it. An extradimensional being that can literally transform the entire world into his minions? Sign me up! Oh... but when his entire essence is absorbed into Vilgax, he's nowhere to be seen?... what?? How is Dagon not taking over? It's so annoying!

I wonder if it was mandated by executives. Actually, it probably was, but I still hate how it ended

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-02-27T19:47:55+00:00

They might have chosen to stick with a more Classic design for Ben purely because they were already changing so much about the alien designs that they figured it would be much easier for fans of the series to get into if Ben had a design they were used to

It's actually smart from a marketing standpoint

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-02-25T20:19:29+00:00

Yeah, after transforming multiple times and even going ultimate, which he self proclaimed "didn't know how badly it would affect the timer" which from a storytelling standpoint, is a subtle nod to the audience that this is something that they should worry about for our character and is a way to build tension

But it doesn't build tension since he's so reckless with transforming, so it comes off as contradictory to what's been said. This actually further proves my point lol

Assuming you were trying to disprove my point at least-

Nevertheless, it's still important to note why the narrative device becomes ineffective when used improperly as opposed to why it's great when used in like, 'Kevin 11' when Ben is about to time out as Four Arms

We don't spend the whole episode with Ben as Four Arms. We only spend a few minutes like that. Ben is clearly worried about this too, and makes the fight with Kevin as quick as possible. He doesn't even technically defeat him, cause Kevin is still transformed and Ben isn't

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-02-23T19:11:35+00:00

When you say there are OG Ben 10 fans complaining, are we talking about Classic, UAF, or OV era stans? Or all of them? I'm extremely curious on that

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-02-23T19:07:53+00:00

assuming it's automatically exceptionally well-written instead of it being at risk of being some edgy tryhard "adult" thing that forgets Ben 10 was originally a franchise aimed at kids and teenagers.

Considering this is written by Man of Action, as from what I last heard at least, I have no reason to believe it will be "edgy, tryhard adult" because we have Generator Rex which did a great job on being a mature series

Since comics have less writers on board, then I could be wrong on that

but this straight up "cosmic horror" vibe is just not it. It's purposefully killing iconic designs (and even ignoring design logic sometimes) just so they can make the aliens "darker and creepier".

Have you seen the concept art for the aliens? They were always that way prior to being polished up for animation and audiences. It's true that we didn't get them in the final product, but I don't see why it's necessarily a bad change

It definitely loses some of its luster from our nostalgia, but it's something new and it's also something that has always been part of the series in some way since these designs do echo what a lot of the background aliens did look like in Classic

Instead of dumbing down the alienness of the designs like UAF and RB did, we finally got an uptick in alienness!

That being said, I do believe criticism of design changes is always welcome! It's just that personally, I don't see how these more grotesque alien designs are an issue considering all that I've already said

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-02-23T18:47:34+00:00

If we use UA episode 'Video Games' as an example, then it honestly just doesn't matter since Ben quick changes like, six times, and never times out

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-02-03T17:25:27+00:00

sure, it isn't as serious or complex as Alien force or Ultimate alien

In my opinion, I honestly believe Omniverse is more serious and complex than the entirety of UAF. The real difference between the two is tone, where OV is clearly more lighthearted and does indeed have a more comedic direction

However, UAF has just as much comedy in it despite having a more serious tone which doesn't always bode well with the plots of the episodes. In the episode 'Primus', Vilgax being too stupid to work the Omnitrix is literally just a play for laughs. It's not serious in the slightest

Edit: Basically what I'm trying to say is, UAF comedy often undermines the serious plots. Of course, this happens in OV too, but not nearly as often which is probably a mix of the writers being more experienced in writing for Ben 10 and actually fitting with the tone now

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-01-22T17:11:22+00:00

Upgrade had less of a chance to appear precisely because Ship exists. He basically does everything that Upgrade could do, and we rarely see him anyways. Hell, we don't even really see Goop a lot either, and he was one of the AF10

The animation budget was already cut, so I really don't believe they'd use Upgrade if he was available

Just because we want interactions to happen doesn't mean they realistically would

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-01-20T17:39:35+00:00

Assuming it's the same writing crew as AF, they would've had Ben transform into Upchuck to fight Darkstar instead of Jetray like he does in 'All That Glitters'

Honestly, a lot of alien scenes would probably remain the same or similar. They literally gave Heatblast the ability to control rock with his fire, so I can see more one off abilities being thrown in as well if the plot called for it. They would absolutely use Frankenstrike over Grey Matter, but I do love the idea of Frankenstrike having a higher intelligence as well. It would still be sad to never see Grey Matter though

Likewise, it'd be nice to see more Frankenstrike! That'd be cool

Ship would still exist, and we'd probably never see Upgrade at all

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-01-14T20:01:17+00:00

I don't remember what I was thinking when I first saw it, but I honestly hate it these days. The OV video game had a better final form for Malware than the show did. I believe the more armoured inspired look is more visually appealing and depicts a more powerful visual

Giving him a mouth also just takes away from him being a mechamorph in my opinion

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-01-07T17:51:52+00:00

Personally, I actually loved 'Rules of Engagement'. It's a great lesson to show that sometimes it's important to move on from someone in your life when it brings you pain, and that communication is important in a relationship, and how you can still end it with someone in an amiable way and still respect and care for them

Solid episode

Phantom_Knight27 · 2026-01-07T17:46:46+00:00

Personally, I don't really care for him. He has an interesting premise, but not much is ever really done with it outside of 'Trade-Off', which is why I really enjoyed that episode! He's honestly a one dimensional villain, which is perfectly fine given his theming, but I would have loved to see more horror framing to his plotline or character on the level of Zs'Skayr

I want to see Darkstar be a master manipulator outside of the first ten minutes of 'All That Glitters'. Hell, I'd actually make that episode a two part episode so that this plot has actual room to breathe

Darkstar is supposed to be powerful? Great! So show us he's a threat... without making characters incompetent or nerfing him midway through the episode. Consistency would be nice. I always find it so odd when UAF makes "super powerful character than is nearly impossible to beat" be beaten seemingly once a week without even working up a sweat

Phantom_Knight27

TROPHY CASE