Alternate Universe: Difference between revisions

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[[Image:dariabbchristmas.jpg|right|frame|Daria with a boyfriend, leading a normal life—if Beavis and Butt-head had not existed (per ''A Very Special Christmas with Beavis and Butt-head'')]]

'''Alternate universe''' in fanfiction is a self-contained separate reality coexisting with the canon reality. For our purposes, an alternate-universe (AU) fanfic is one in which a change is made to the sequence of events that occur in the canon ''Daria'' TV series~~. This is usually called an ''alternate history'' or counterfactual story~~. AU stories are seen more often since the show went off the air, but it could be argued that many of the stories done while the series was ongoing were also AUs (e.g., [[Daria Morgendorffer|Daria]]/[[Trent Lane|Trent]] [[shipper]]s in which they actually date, or [[Kara Wild]]'s monumental [[Driven Wild Universe]]).

'''Alternate universe''' in fanfiction is a self-contained separate reality coexisting with the canon reality. For our purposes, an alternate-universe (AU) fanfic is one in which a change is made to the sequence of events that occur in the canon ''Daria'' TV series. AU stories are seen more often since the show went off the air, but it could be argued that many of the stories done while the series was ongoing were also AUs (e.g., [[Daria Morgendorffer|Daria]]/[[Trent Lane|Trent]] [[shipper]]s in which they actually date, or [[Kara Wild]]'s monumental [[Driven Wild Universe]]).

One can make a distinction between two types of ''Daria'' AUs. In the first, the alteration to events is made only to events internal to the series—i.e., not to the larger historical setting of the United States or the world. An AU in which Daria does not come to [[Lawndale High]] but instead attends [[Grove Hills]], for instance, is not assumed to be a consequence of a historical event outside of Daria's family; her parents had a choice of which school to send her to, and they chose Grove Hills.

In the second, rarer type, a change to ~~commonly shared~~ history has taken place—the Confederacy wins the American Civil War, Nazi Germany wins World War II, etc.—and the story describes the ~~assumed~~ consequences of such a change. "[[Gone]]," by [[The Angst Guy]], is one such example.

In the second, rarer type, a change to world history has taken place—the Confederacy wins the American Civil War, Nazi Germany wins World War II, etc.—and the story describes the possible consequences of such a change. "[[Gone]]," by [[The Angst Guy]], is one such example. This kind of story is called '''alternate history''' or '''counterfactual'' history in mainstream science fiction. For details, see [[Science Fiction#Alternate History SF|alternate history SF]].

It is also possible to find both types combined in a single AU, such as in the [[Daria Von Doom Series]]. Within events of the show, Daria breaks up with Tom early, during ''[[Is It Fall Yet?]]'' This occurs after Daria discovers that Tom hadn't included her in decisions about attending Sloane family activities, like the Starry Night Ball. In addition, the common history is different from the AU is different from regular ''Daria'' continuity by occurring within one of the Marvel Universes, making the series a [[Crossover|crossover]] as well.