sholio | A poll on hurt/comfort

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A poll on hurt/comfort

I had a discussion on this topic maybe 5-6 years ago, I think, which introduced me to the interesting and startling realization that some people just do not like this thing that I like. This is obviously completely valid, but since there are a number of new people around now, I think it's time for a repeat just to check in on changing tastes and whatnot.

The question is: If you like h/c, do you like h/c with groups, or just with two people?

My shocking realization in the previous discussion was that many people do not, in fact, like group h/c, which is one of my favorite types! (Obviously all opinions are valid here.)

By group h/c, I mean things like: two or more people taking care of the hurt person, the canon's central team/group protecting someone, the person realizing they're accepted into the group *as* the comfort, the whole group/team getting hurt together, and that sort of thing. Many people are very specifically into h/c just with their ship or two particular blorbos, and introducing more people to the dynamic makes it not fun anymore. I support this as a completely valid choice and do indeed read a lot of h/c of the "two blorbos" sort, but how do *you* feel?

Poll #29561

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 88

View Respondents

Do you like h/c with a group of caretakers?

View Answers

Yes, I like it
37 (42.0%)

No, I don't like it
2 (2.3%)

I like it in certain specific circumstances
24 (27.3%)

I never thought about it before and therefore don't know how I feel yet
18 (20.5%)

Your binary options cannot contain my complex thoughts! (Elaborate in comments.)
4 (4.5%)

I have no opinion/just want to see the results.
3 (3.4%)

Feel free to elaborate or discuss this in comments!

Edit: Cursed once again by DW's inability to edit a poll once you've posted it, I just want to mention that 'all hurt together' is also a valid option here, not just groups with one person hurt. Actually it'd be interesting to know if that makes a difference.

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This is such an interesting question! I was going to say I think I dislike this except in certain specific circumstances, but given the variations that you mentioned it may actually be the reverse, there are lots of situations where this does work for me and one type that (usually) doesn’t: I tend to not be into an ensemble providing comfort to a single person who is an outsider, because in that case it sometimes feels like it strays into [spectacle / humiliation] territory? Like, h/c is so much about vulnerability, and one person being vulnerable before a bunch of people who don’t already have their trust is not a very comfortable situation! (But also I can be persuaded into liking nearly anything if written convincingly, so it’s not like this is a hard-and-fast rule.)

(Also, hello, I realized I neglected to introduce myself when I commented here recently! You commented on my Biggles/Anno Dracula fic on ao3 a little while back, after which I realized you were on Dreamwidth as well and subscribed to you here.)

Oh hi, I'm glad you stopped by to comment! :D I completely enjoyed that fic just from general osmosis about the books; I am 100% here for wereplane von Stalhein breaking his wings to protect Biggles. ;__;

Like, h/c is so much about vulnerability, and one person being vulnerable before a bunch of people who don’t already have their trust is not a very comfortable situation!

Oh, that is a really interesting exception and a good point! I'll definitely think about this.

The wereplane concept is just so good! (And having glanced through the Biggles challenge requests for AUFest2023 I am perhaps rethinking that moment I had last month when I wanted to write a second, postwar vampire airplane encounter and thought, “no way does anyone want more of this, right…” :-D)

Oh, yeah, this actually made me think about that specific thing - I would say that H/C is as close to a bulletproof favorite trope as I have, but I have definitely seen some variations of this where it strayed into something that felt uncomfortable and exposing instead of comforting, and I think that lack of trust in the group can really contribute to that.

(I feel like this about one on one H/C sometimes as well, usually because the comfort feels overbearing instead of helpful, but I'm struggling to articulate exactly the vibe that bugs me)

I've been thinking about it and for me it might be an agency thing. If the hurt person really would prefer to be elsewhere and not taken care of by these people then it's basically noncon perpetrated by my favourite characters under the guise of helpfulness. If, however, there's sufficient setup in canon or in the fic that the hurt person is actually inwardly thrilled to be taken care of it feels comforting. It's a fine line where the second hand embarrassment and spectacle/humiliation will rear its head, but in most scenarios where I enjoy this there's sufficient evidence in canon and/or the story that the hurt person isn't as much of an outsider as they think.

Edit: I'll add that this can be true for me with just two characters as well, it isn't necessarily specific to group dynamics. Character A "comforting" Character B against their will does not work for me at all.

Edited 2023-07-13 16:23 (UTC)

Yeah, I agree with this - I think that the h/c definitely needs to be something the hurt person *wants*, but that's also true with one-on-one caretaking as well. I could see it being a more inherently fraught situation with an entire group of people than with just one, but I'm not sure if it changes the dynamic all *that* much (for me).

Yeah, I think this is where I land with it as well.

the canon's central team/group protecting someone, the person realizing they're accepted into the group *as* the comfort

Particularly these variations, I think.

Yessss, those are also favorites of mine.

(Hoping your sleep schedule is not currently terrible, as we meet from different ends of the night.)

(Hoping your sleep schedule is not currently terrible, as we meet from different ends of the night.)

(It is, alas, completely trash, but it means I especially appreciate diversions such as this poll.)

Oh, I have a real soft spot for this kind of thing. “We look after our own” in particular, ie the group of characters rally round one of their number who is injured/incapacitated, particularly where the character who needs help is one of the following: (1) generally prickly and hard to like (2) extremely competent/the leader and usually the one helping everyone else (3) someone who finds it hard to consciously acknowledge that they are liked/valued/worthy of being helped.

Yesssss, this exactly, all of this! I absolutely *love* that feeling with the characters rallying around someone in their group who doesn't normally get that kind of attention or believes themselves unloveable.

H/C is one genre where disability identity–formation shows up (yes, I remember the 2010 H/C bingo discussion).

In Stargate Atlantis, Rodney McKay is canonically allergic, acutely aware of his body, an anxious savant part of a tight team of four. There's so much great fic where John, Teyla, and Ronon embrace and support Rodney's atypical being.

Trying to think back to the fics I loved in various fandoms and I generally remember liking group h/c, with a special interest in "the person realizing they're accepted into the group *as* the comfort". Now that is something I tend to adore! I also quite like "the canon's central team/group protecting someone" too, and yes, other types of group h/c, but I think these two are especially of interest to me (this was particularly true in SGA, but then Rodney. Need I say more)?!

Two person h/c can be good too, but sometimes it can get a bit much for me if it feels overdone. I mean, there are certain characters who might do friendship hugs, for instance, but other characters the writer would have to work hard to make me believe they would. Which isn't impossible - some have certainly managed to make that work for me!

I think I like both types of h/c, and if the writer throws in some lovely angst too (I am a total angst bunny!), well, happy fangirl! :D

Edited 2023-07-13 11:43 (UTC)

For some reason I cannot vote in the poll but only see the results. Add my vote to I like it in certain specific circumstances. I'd prefer not to have everyone hurt as I don't really like hurting people even in fiction and some of my favourite shows are spoiled by a higher level of violence than I have toleration for.I'm just a wuss who only really likes the comfort side of h/c

I tend to prefer just two people, but I think there are certain circumstances in which more people work for me. However, there's a point where things get too 'public' and then it's uncomfortable for me. Not sure, if I can explain this. I think it's okay if one person knows and the others don't have the full picture or are just guessing at what happened. I'm not fond of everybody being filled in on the situation. I think I need a bit of privacy/ambiguity/drawing their own conclusion instead of things being spelled out.

I've genuinely never thought about it /o\ so obviously I am now going to obsessively assess the fics I particularly like in order to try and figure it out...

h/c is not bulletproof for me, so I only like it in specific circumstances anyway, but if it is the kind of h/c I like, how many people are involved doesn't matter.

(I *do* especially like what I call recovery!fic which is about a hurt person getting better but can focus more on the hurt person working to get better than on other people providing comfort, and might be more about them finding community and support generally, or on then getting different kinds of comfort from different people/communities, which I think is kind of sideways to what you're describing but can also overlap with it a lot.)

Nice point. I prefer h/c to include at least some recovery. When I read stories that end with, say, rescue so that I know the injured person will get better but I don't get to see it, I usually wish it had an addition scene (or more) to show that part.

(I *do* especially like what I call recovery!fic which is about a hurt person getting better but can focus more on the hurt person working to get better than on other people providing comfort, and might be more about them finding community and support generally, or on then getting different kinds of comfort from different people/communities, which I think is kind of sideways to what you're describing but can also overlap with it a lot.)

This is absolutely one of my favourite things to read about!

I feel like I would need a more specific definition of what’s meant by “h/c”/what elements and emotional contexts are being considered to define that category?

But I also have some amorphous “i just woke up an hour ago” thoughts about, I think for at least some people the level of emotional intensity and or vulnerability they look for in something they’re thinking of as h/c is not something that it would be easy to write with more than one person, or potentially would feel unsafe to do so. So that might be part of it.

I usually like it, especially if the hurt person was unsure about their place on the team, and now everyone is going out of their way to look after them.

I do find it can get a bit smothering, but that's an issue with regular h/c too.

Group hurt/comfort, specifically when all or many of the group members are hurt and they're desperately cobbling together help and comfort for each other, is my CATNIP.

That said, I think it can be harder to pull off effectively than one on one H/C, so that's a consideration.

... I continue to love your little dragon icon THE MOST. <3

But yeah, I looove that kind of thing, and also (as mentioned above) the group pulling together to support one of their newer or pricklier team members, or someone who didn't even realize the group valued them at all.

I think you're right that it's trickier to get right than h/c with only two characters, though.

Count me in as 'I have never thought about this as a specific thing before'. I like it here in Biggles fandom with such a lovely close-knit team, that works beautifully. I think I need to love all the characters for group h/c to work for me, I'm primarily interested in h/c when it involves characters/character dynamics I love, and it's more common in various fandoms for there to be one particular pair of characters whose dynamic works for me and then I want h/c for them specifically. But when the whole group works for me, then whole-group h/c is great.

Yeah, I answered the poll as "yes I like it" because I do, but as with any other kind of h/c, I need to be into the character dynamic in general - so yeah, I'm thinking of things like Biggles, where I love the team dynamic and love all of them individually and together, so group h/c is very much my thing here. It does depend on how I feel about the characters and the the dynamic between them, but that's equally true for one-on-one h/c as well.

Having thought about it, I think I agree with both these comments - I do enjoy group h/c, but probably only where I'm already into the group dynamic (as with Biggles). But, like you say, that's true for one-on-one h/c as well.

I said "in certain specific circumstances", but it's more that I'm picky about character dynamics in h/c, and the more characters are involved, the harder it gets to find something that hits me just right. *g*

Very interesting to think about!

For me, h/c is all about being seen and validated, to understand that friends, lovers, partners and family are there to care for you even and especially at the moments when you can offer no acts of service in return.

Showing vulnerability, particularly when you're usually the one looking out for other people, is really one of the highest levels of intimacy that I can think of.

Oh, and because I like my h/c to assure me of the comfort at the end, I'm not super fond of scenarios when several people are hurt at the same time; it increases the potential risk of a) an unhappy ending; b) the hurt caretaker having to take care of the others; c) that they all will be taken care of by strangers who don't understand them.

That's so interesting because for me 'the hurt caretakeher having to take care of the others' is one of the iddiest things! It's neat how there is such a range of preferences

It's neat how there is such a range of preferences

Yes, reading all of the responses has given me a much better understanding of the nuances in h/c and what elements I really like.

Reading this, and all these comments so far, I think that I would say that hurt/comfort is not one of my particular fascinations, but like so many other tropes, I love it when it is done well.

In my case I find whether or not I enjoy h/c is completely situational. It'll depend on how it happens, who comforts who... I'd notice it is a trope where I tolerate ooc-ness even less than usual though -if anything happens I don't think the character would say or do, I'm out.

I don't think I had thought about it before this question, but it seems I tend to prefer h/c scenarios when it's one-on-one. Most group scenarios come off cheesy and... insincere? To me. Especially when they're done with groups that are less than harmonious in canon. For example, lately I've been in a fic reading mood for DC, especially Jason Todd, and there's always a point where Batfamily Bonding TM becomes too unbelievable and fake for my tastes LOL.

Totally valid! The interesting thing is that last time I had a discussion about this (which I tried to find but it seems to have vanished into the mists of the past internet) quite a lot of people came down on the side of preferring h/c one-on-one, whereas this time it seems to have swung considerably more to the group h/c or "it depends" side - but it's definitely a thing people have polarizing opinions on, and lots of people feel that way about it!

(I think it does really depend on the fandom and the nature of the character dynamics too, both as they're written in canon and in fanfic; as you say, there are some fandoms where the group dynamic isn't written very well ...)

I think I like group h/c more often than I don't (which I see someone else has already said), but not always. I don't want too big a group, or it just all feels diffuse. A Stargate team of four is often about the right size, I think!

And everyone hurt at the same time feels different than one or two hurt so that the others can focus on them. "All hurt together" feels more like commiseration than h/c to me.

Yeah, I think a bigger group tends to start losing close cohesion as a group, too, and splintering off into smaller groups. Most of the groups/teams I can think of that I really like are about 4-5 people max.

I think, as a lot of people have probably already said, I like it when The Team or The Group is the unit I'm interested in--being a Critical Role fan I'm like "ah yes my OTP is These Seven People Being Inseparable" so of course in a h/c situation I want them comforting/consoling/protecting each other--to the point where I got a plot bunny to write sex pollen and was immediately like "okay well there's the guy who got sex pollened, my favoritest woobie, and there's the three people who would be willing to have sex with him, and there's his bestie who is his personal emotional support, and the other two who are general logistical/emotional support for the whole group so obviously they are just all in the room together for the entire sex pollen experience, yes, seven people is the correct number here."

But then in a fandom where I'm more tightly pairing-focused, I just want my pairing in on the action. So possibly this question is just "is The Team ever the unit of your emotional attachment in your fandoms?" XD

This makes a lot of sense to me! I think for me it's often a preferred pairing + a group I also really like that they're part of, but it definitely hinges around whether I find The Group iddy and interesting on their own, too.

A little belatedly but I was going to say this -- it mostly depends on what relationships I'm most into in the fandom; if I have a strong OTP and am just mildly fond of the team, I want the h/c between my favorite pair, while as if I'm really into Team I love them all being involved.

--Also being an OT7 in another fandom, it does amuse me how naturally it comes to find roles for all of them in a given scenario -- normally I'd be like, that's too many characters, but sometimes 7 is just right!

"5-6 years ago, I think, which introduced me to the interesting and startling realization that some people just do not like this thing that I like"

LOLOLOL

I went with 'I like it in specific circumstances' because it depends on the canon as well. Some canons are very team/crew-focused, and for those kind of canons, the group hurt/comfort makes a lot of sense, and some canons a very duo-focused or focused on one character, and there one-on-one hurt/comfort makes a lot of sense.

as a person who is eternally accidentally plastered with aroace glasses :P the number of people involved absolutely does not matter to me! Interesting Character Dynamics are interesting to meno matter the number of people involved, or whether or not it's shippy. h/c isn't specifically a thing I seek out, but it is one of many dynamics I can enjoy reading about.

I suppose the fewer people involved the easier it is to focus on the emotional realities and experiences of the characters in question, so a large group would hit very different vibes? But those vibes are fun too, just different! like, I'm thinking about the end of the Martian movie where huge crowds of people all across planet earth are to varying degrees providing care and comfort and both emotional and material support for one hurt man trying to leave mars, for example. And I loved that.

I'm not that into h/c but I'll still read it, I guess is my take! I like it insofar as it is great for characterization but it doesn't really do much for me otherwise.

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