K.A's response to the final book criticsm.

[Chad32]

Not in the opinion of most of her fans.

[Liz]

Because it's a better ending the way she wrote it?

ilu.

What kind of crappy ending would "And Marco and Ax lived happily ever after" be?

But I guess that's a classic ending for a children's fantasy book...

[ChimichangaChupacabra]

That's just the thing, though.  I love that about K.A./Michael's series books.  They don't bullshiz around and talk down to their audience, y'know?

Sure, the book was targeted at 12 year olds.  But not to be gender specific here, but Animorphs had balls, man.  When you think about some of the stuff in these books, it's pretty freakin' dark.  Some of the stuff Marco and Jake specifically dealt with is like completely unheard of for books of this reading level.

Why would the ending be the "epic space battle, good guys prevail hallelujah" type of thing we've become so accustomed to?  The books didn't really stay close to expected conventions for a kid's series in the first place.  There are just so many more arguments toward the ending being effective than there are for it being a let-down.

[JFalcon]

What kind of crappy ending would "And Marco and Ax lived happily ever after" be?

Well, I bet Marco and Ax would have liked it  

[Chad32]

I swear I'm going to invent a word like Happyphobe. Someone who discriminates against happy endings with intolerance. I'll start smiting people, in in that explanation box, I'll put Happyphobe. Well, maybe not that last part.

[Toby Hamee]

What kind of crappy ending would "And Marco and Ax lived happily ever after" be?

Well, I bet Marco and Ax would have liked it  

Lol, I'll bet they would have.

Sheesh, honestly I kind of just lost a little respect for K.A. when I read that. I really think she overreacted. As an author, she should know that her fans won't always agree with her work and that there will always be some criticism. I don't think she should've lashed out like that at her fans, who consist mostly of children.... I think she was kind of harsh near the end of her letter. She should have just ended the books the way she wanted to and ignored people who didn't like it and simply left it at that. That's what I would have done, lol.

[Chad32]

I think she should have stuck to the demographic, instead of changing it to an older style just because the first fans undoubtably grew older with time. I think that any author that sells their work should always keep the fans in mind during a series, especially if she hopes those same fans will read her new book series.

[Liz]

Sheesh, honestly I kind of just lost a little respect for K.A. when I read that. I really think she overreacted. As an author, she should know that her fans won't always agree with her work and that there will always be some criticism. I don't think she should've lashed out like that at her fans, who consist mostly of children.... I think she was kind of harsh near the end of her letter. She should have just ended the books the way she wanted to and ignored people who didn't like it and simply left it at that. That's what I would have done, lol.

Hm, I didn't think the letter was too harsh or overreacting.  She did state her respect for her readers.  I can't think of any other nicer way she could have said why she ended it the way she did.

And yes, I am very much a happyphobe, though to my credit I do like Disney movies.

[ChimichangaChupacabra]

She's the author.  There is no "should" or "shouldn't".  It is as it is.  Animorphs is what we got.  If you've got an issue with it, that's what fan-fiction is for.  I mean, yeah, K.A. was pretty harsh way back in the day with her retort to all of the whining, but you know what?  Good for her.  She's right in a lot of ways, the people who get so militant about the ending could be said to not really 'get' the series anyway, so more power to 'em.  She explained her reasons, I'm sure you have yours for wanting it different.  Fact is, though, Animorphs had an unhappy ending, and it seems pretty clear in hindsight she'd planned that for some time.

Ergo, a happy ending for Animorphs would no longer be Animorphs.

(Holy crap.  I just said "ergo".  What a smarmy smug a-hole.  I dislike myself.)

[Starsword]

Now that I think about it, I wish an Animorph died halfway through the series. If its realism the author wants...

[ChimichangaChupacabra]

Tobias.  (!!!1!!1!)

   *Runs*

[Starsword]

I'm actually inclined to agree. He was truly the heart and soul of the Animorphs. It would be cool to see them deteriorate in a group and morale sense after his death.

[ChimichangaChupacabra]

He was the whinerbaby of the Animorphs, is what he was.  He could have been taken down like a punk, by some random owl in the middle of the night in his meadow.    

Hey, at least then we'd get to see Rachel truly show some of the wussy readers what it means to lose it.  Xena Warrior Bear Buffy Slayer Mallrat Bloodbath Princess!  Mwahaha.

[Chad32]

It would have been somewhat poetic for Tobias to be the first and last casualty of the war. Not that I would have wanted him to die any more than the others. I just think that if I had to write the last book, and some gunman ordered me to kill someone off, it would be Tobias or Cassie. Cassie because of the irony that she died because of what she did in book 50.

Of course either one of those would set Rachel off.

[Aleron]

Hate to go against the grain, but Tobias was the pinnacle of "moody emo kid".  His brooding used to annoy me as bad as Cassie's whining.

And there's a middle ground between "happily ever after" and "they all die at the end".  There really is.  It's called "bittersweet victory", and IMO, 54 was going great until the last few chapters.  But hey, it's her series.  If she wants to end it one way, then she should.  Hate to sound like a broken record, but I'm just glad it's open for fan-fics.  You could say 54 encourages kids to write stories of their own.