Dramatic Comedy

A story in which comedic and dramatic elements appear in roughly equal amounts. "Dramatic comedy" is the term preferred in Daria fandom, though one also sees the phrases comedy-drama and tragicomedy used. ("Dramedy" is also used on occasion, but it is a terrible word.)

A special award for Favorite Dramatic Comedy is voted for in the annual Daria Fanworks Awards. There is some confusion when using the terms "drama," "comedy," and "dramatic comedy," and considerable overlap sometimes exists among the nominations for favorites in these categories. Indeed, in voting for the 2nd Daria Fanworks Awards, the category had to be dropped because only one story was nominated out of uncertainty as to what actually qualified as a dramatic comedy.

Excellent recent examples of dramatic comedies, each with significant portions of humor and seriousness, include Kara Wild's Driven Wild Universe tale, "The Age of Cynicism," and Kristen Bealer's "Card Games."