Alternate 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/Trent shippers in which they actually date, or Kara Wild's monumental Driven Wild Universe).
A system for naming fan-created AU worlds is described at Daria Multiverse.
Types of AU
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 ("Regifted" and "Grove Hell on Earth"), 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 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 (Cuban Missile Crisis turns nuclear) and "The Other Side of Time" by The Sidhe (Confederacy wins) are two such examples. This kind of story is called alternate history or counterfactual history in mainstream science fiction. For details, see 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 the Marvel Universe, making the series a crossover as well.
Alternate-universe tales in Daria fandom tend to collect around three particular points in the series, though not exclusively. The first episode of the series in which Daria meets Jane, "Esteemsters," has received enormous attention and has been re-written many times. (See "Esteemsters" and Daria Fanfic.) The circumstances and fallout of The Kiss have also had great attention, being a significant (and divisive) moment in canon (see [[Dye! Dye! My Darling#Dye! Dye! My Darling and Fanfic|Dye! Dye! My Darling and Fanfic). Daria/Trent shipper tales that strengthen the crush into mature love and the entire Daria-Tom-Jane triangle have also been revisited on a regular basis, though the former less often of late.
One notable subdivision of the AU group are stories about Daria characters as superheroes. Various canon characters are assigned roles as heroes or villains, depending on their behavior in the series.
Another subcategory are those stories in which the sex of a major character is reversed (assuming the usual 50/50 chance of having a boy or girl with each birth); the John Lane series and "Darius" are examples, but earlier tales along this line have been told, such as MMan's "Brother, I Asked for It," in which Daria dreams Quinn had turned out as Quint.
Fanfics will sometimes have the 'regular' Daria cast crossing over with an alternate universe: "The Other Side of Time" revolves around this, as does "Through a Closet, Darkly" by Brian Taylor.
Attitudes towards AUs
In the broader science-fiction field, alternate-history stories have tended to support the idea that the present world represents the best of all possible outcomes in history. This view has been used in Daria fandom, too, though less stridently; Brother Grimace's "Victory Lane" is representative of this approach. The John Lane stories by Richard Lobinske, however, reveal a Dariaverse better overall than canon, as does Mystik Slacker's "The Butterfly Storm." Worlds in which events change but the overall pro-and-con outcome is almost like canon can be seen in The Alchemist's "Jane on the Side" and The Angst Guy's "Click, Click, Boom". Some of these, like "The Hallowed Halls of Fielding" by Roentgen, have the alternate universe drastically different to canon but with a 'normal' pro-and-con outcome, just with different pro's and cons to the mainstream universe.
Still, an idea persists that, as the series shows, Daria did more good than ill, and her removal would cause more trouble than her presence (e.g., "It Slipped Through My Hands, Like a Shadow, Like a Dream," "Daria's Addition," and "After the End" by The Angst Guy).
CINCGREEN once proposed a division of AU fanfiction into "organic" and "inorganic" groups. Organic AUs are those in which the divergence flows from a multiple-outcome event that is part of Daria canon, such as the near-accident Daria experiences in "Boxing Daria." An inorganic AU is one that flows from a unique event not present in canon, such as a car accident that takes place after the conclusion of the episode "Road Worrier," resulting in Trent Lane's death and Daria's mourning for him.
One problem in writing AU fanfics is the knowledge that the episodes of Daria were not necessarily shown in chronological sequence. It is commonly assumed that the episodes from seasons one and two show Daria's first year in Lawndale, seasons three and four (and Is It Fall Yet?) show her second year, and season five (and Is It College Yet?) show her final year. However, the episodes within each season are not always in sequence. Most famously, "Road Worrier" from the first season shows Daria and company attempting to go to Alternapalooza, a rock concert that takes place in mid-August (per The Daria Diaries) but is sandwiched between episodes showing portions of Daria's sophomore year at Lawndale High. The same problem is seen with the episodes of Season Five and events in Is It College Yet? Occasionally an AU fanfic incorporates the out-of-sequence episodes as still being in sequence with a tidy explanation as to why (e.g., "Deus Jane," by The Angst Guy).
Alternate universe agencies and characters
Due to a widespread interest in sci-fi & fantasy among Daria fans, fanfic writers have created a number of organisations that look out for and patrol the various universes: often, they will be staffed by alternate versions of known characters. Several of these groups have become shared universe concepts, open to all writers: they include DELPHI (a covert intelligence organization within the U.S. Government on various worlds with inter-dimensional travel capabilities), the Corps of Ringbearers (a pan-dimensional group similar to the Green Lantern Corps with a focus on threats of mystic/pseudo-mystic origin, humanitarian relief efforts and covert intelligence-gathering operations), The Agency (another pan-dimensional organization that acts to maintain temporal/universal integrity, in the same vein as the Voyagers and Project Quantum Leap), and The Foundation (mystical group trying to keep the omniverse intact).
A vast amount of original characters, and significant variations of canon cast, exist in these fics. For a DariaWiki list of original AU Daria characters, go to Alternate Universe Characters. Several of the original characters have appeared in fanfics set in different AUs and some have been used by several different writers, becoming shared universe characters.
External Links
Essays on Fanfiction AUs
AUs in Daria Fanfiction
- “Alternate History” fanfic index for Outpost Daria (a good overview of the field)
- “Sci-Fi, Fantasy & Horror” fanfic index for Outpost Daria (many of these are also AU stories)
Miscellaneous
- First March 2005 interview with Glenn Eichler on DVDaria, in which the out-of-sequence nature of Season Five episodes is discussed