It is not uncommon for genres to have a mix of those who are fans of it and those who are not fans of it. The Omegaverse is not unique in this regard. However, what is unique seems to be just how vehemently opposed to the genre those who are not fans of it can get. The dislike seems to transcend the philosophy of “Don’t Like; Don’t Read,” and many of those who are not into the genre actively rail against it. The deeper I dug into why this might be, the more it became obvious that the Omegaverse is far more complicated than it initially appears, but it is that complicated nature that produces such vehement dislike as a byproduct.
For those unfamiliar with it, the Omegaverse is a popular genre in the realm of fanfiction. It’s often referred to simply as a trope, but after looking into the matter, I’ve determined that it’s more complicated than that and is more accurately referred to as a genre. The genre is often associated with smut, both by fans of it and those who are not fans. However, it appears to cover deeper concepts and is sometimes used for stories that have no sexual content whatsoever.
Full disclaimer, I consider myself one of those who is not into the Omegaverse. I will try to stay objective with my overall analysis of the structure of the genre and get into the introspective nature of my personal dislike stems from that structure later. However, it is likely that elements of my personal bias may leak in. I want to make it clear that while I might have a personal dislike of the genre, this essay and my efforts to dig into the structure of the genre stem from a sincere desire to better understand it. Both so I can better understand why fandom as a whole interacts with it the way that they do, and to better understand myself and my personal relationship with the genre. My hope is that by sharing my conclusions, I can help others better describe what they like or dislike about the genre a readers and perhaps help writers better tune their writing into being exactly what they want it to be.
Overall, I have found that the Omegaverse appears to be the result of a conglomeration of several unrelated tropes. Sometime around the year 2010, the following tropes came together to form the Omegaverse as it exists now:
- Werewolf Smut
- BDSM Alternate Universe (AU)
- Fuck Or Die
- Male Pregnancy (MPreg)
- Bioessentialism
- Defamiliarization of Gender Norms
It is this structure of several unrelated tropes coming together that leads me to conclude that the Omegaverse functions more as a genre than a trope itself. However, I suspect that it is this structure that is causing the Omegaverse to become so controversial. Each of these tropes is, individually, controversial on its own, with many people either being in love with them or hating them. When combined, this has a multiplicative effect rather than an additive one.
- Constituent Tropes
- The Impact of These Tropes Combining
- My Personal Experience
- What Does This Mean For Authors and Readers?
Constituent Tropes
Werewolf Smut
Of all of the constituent tropes that formed the Omegaverse, Werewolf Smut is the one that has the best claim to being a genre in its own right since it is itself comprised of a number of different tropes. However, for the purpose of this analysis, I think that it can be divided into two subsets: physical and social. The first is the manner in which physical aspects of the werewolf transformation have been incorporated into smut. The second is the manner in which smut authors have incorporated aspects of wolf behavior and social structure as they understand it into the behavior of their werewolf characters in order to layer the animalistic aspects of wolves into their characters.
Werewolf Physiology
The incorporation of werewolf physiology into such stories is rather straightforward. There’s typically some sort of transformation aspect with the character developing fur, claws, fangs, enhanced musculature, enhanced senses (particularly hearing and smell), and so forth. All of these are aspects of all stories featuring werewolves, but the smut stories in particular also address their genitalia changing to become more canine and extrapolate the enhanced senses into things such as scent marking. In addition, when such stories involve lesbian pairings (F/F), they sometimes include the Girl Penis (G!P) trope as a part of the transformation. This is something that sometimes occurs as a separate trope in F/F smut, but the transformation aspect of the werewolf makes for an easy excuse to incorporate it.
Those who are fans of this collection of tropes often point to the increased passion involved with the animalistic transformation being a major appeal. It also taps into the Monsterfucker and Furry communities as having elements that appeal to both of those groups (some particular stories might appeal to one more than the other).
Those who are not fans of this specifically find the animalistic nature of the transformation revolting. The lack of humanity of the characters results in a lack of appeal. This is especially common among readers who have become used to interacting with werewolves through the horror genre. When the werewolf transformation is one that a reader typically associates with being horrific, it seems radically out of place in erotica.
While the Omegaverse tends to tone down the transformation aspect, it does tend to retain the overall use of these tropes and so retains the appeal of those who like the tropes and the disgust of those who don’t like them.
Werewolf Sociology
A common trope associated with werewolves is to have their social structure mirror that of real-life wolves. However, this is where a problem emerges. The current state of the popular understanding of wolf psychology and sociology is not aligned with the current state of scientific knowledge of these topics.
In 1970, the biologist Dr. David Mech published a book titled The Wolf: Ecology and Behavior of an Endangered Species. In this book, he detailed his observations of wolf social structure and how a hierarchy was developed from infighting between the wolves, where the stronger wolves would dominate the weaker ones. He used the term “Alpha” to describe the most dominant members of the pack, “Omega” the least dominant, and “Beta” those who were in the middle by being dominant over some and subservient to others.
In 1999, Dr. Mech published an article in a research journal that completely unraveled his earlier conclusions. He has spent his subsequent career detailing all of the methodological flaws in his initial research and detailing his updated model for wolf sociology in which the leaders of the pack can most often be best described as “Mom and Dad” or “Grandman and Grandpa” than his earlier model of infighting and forceful dominance. At his urging, his initial book is no longer in print. In the field of Ethology (the study of animal behavior), Dr. Mech is very well regarded for both the thoroughness of his research and his willingness to admit a mistake and correct it with updated research.
However, by this time, the concepts of “Alpha Wolves” and “Omega Wolves” had escaped the scientific community and had entered the general public consciousness. There were two main places it took root: depictions of werewolves when they were not being shown as solitary monsters (which ultimately led to the terms Alph, Beta, and Omega making their way into Werewolf Smut and the Omegaverse), and a specific form of toxic masculinity where men would identify themselves as “Alpha Males” as an excuse to emulate the violent hierarchy aspects of Dr. Mech’s early research.
So, there are people who are not familiar with the current state of research into wolf psychology or have become so deeply ingrained into the established tropes surrounding werewolves that they don’t care how inaccurate it is. Much like the physical aspects of Werewolf Smut, such fans are fond of how such inhuman psychology brings in a wild animalistic passion to the characters.
However, at the same time, there are those who have had a significant amount of exposure to the brand of toxic masculinity that uses similar terminology. There are also those who have seen such terms incorporated into anti-wolf propaganda. So, for some readers, modeling the behavior of characters after this misunderstanding of wolf behavior is too reminiscent of too many distasteful things, which are unrelated to the story at hand, and so they find them unappealing.
BDSM AU
Unrelated to the tropes surrounding werewolves, there is a long history of tropes surrounding the practice of BDSM. BDSM stands for Bondage and Discipline (BD), Domination and Submission (DS), and Sadism and Masochism (SM). It is a collection of sexual kinks that, while seldom practiced all at once, are similar enough and have enough overlap of those interested in them that they are typically grouped together.
BDSM literature has a long history, long enough that classic literature has shaped the terminology used to describe it. The terms Sadism and Masochism are derived from the names of authors who wrote what is now regarded as BDSM literature. Typically, such works involve some sort of depiction of one or more kinks that are grouped under BDSM. Sometimes, this involves showing entire fictional worlds where these kinks have become normalized in society, hence the “Alternate Universe” aspect of the trope.
This is something that is readily used to some extent or another in all erotic literature, not just fanfiction. In fact, some works of BDSM literature have become household names, such as 50 Shades of Grey. While 50 Shades does not depict an entire alternate universe to be classified as a BDSM AU, there are many lesser-known works that do. As a result, it should be no surprise that this trope found its way into the world of fanfiction.
In the Omegaverse, this typically comes in the form of society being built around the expectation that some people will be Alphas and others will be Omegas. Building off of the violent hierarchy social structure, this results in a culture that expects Alphas to take control and dominate the Omegas.
It is a trope that is mostly found intriguing by those who practice BDSM with their real partners or at least have a curiosity about the practice. It is also something that many fans of intricate worldbuilding find very intriguing when the works show restructured or entirely new cultures to justify the in-universe normalization of whatever kinks are at hand. Due to the wide diversity of what kinks could be incorporated, it results in a wide diversity of how these worlds are written and a subsequent creativity in the authors.
However, BDSM is a practice that is controversial when practiced in real life. Some people have difficulty drawing a distinction between exercising a kink in a healthy manner and abuse. So its inclusion into literature is also controversial. Activities that some people find erotic, others find horrific. Even those who agree with the concept that “depiction does not mean endorsement” may notice that sometimes the authors do mean to endorse some of the activities taking place, and become uncomfortable with how they are portrayed in the stories. Especially when authors use fiction as a place to explore extreme concepts that they are intrigued by but find too dangerous to attempt in real life. Such extremes are off-putting to some readers.
There is also the added layer that some people who are fans of BDSM AUs in general feel as though the Omegaverse stifles the creativity of the trope. By tying the BDSM AU concepts to all of the other aspects of the Omegaverse, this limits what the author can do and prevents some of the more creative expressions that come from such a world. However, this opinion is not universal, and some people specifically note being fond of the vast diversity of creative worldbuilding that authors have been able to express in the Omegaverse.
Fuck Or Die
While there are a few different variations of the Fuck Or Die trope, the Omegaverse seems to borrow most directly from the Pon Farr trope. This comes from the Star Trek fandom, specifically a canon episode in The Original Series where it is revealed that a typical aspect of the Vulcan mating cycle is for them to enter a sort of heat or rut where they must mate within a certain time frame or they will go crazy and then die.
As used in the Omegaverse, this is largely unchanged. The term “Pon Farr” itself is seldom used, but the narrative structure of the concept is used almost exactly. Sometimes, the risk of death itself is taken out of the equation, but sometimes it is left in.
Fans of this trope generally find it excellent for when they want an excuse plot that will jump directly to the smut scenes. It’s not very complicated and allows for a quick and easy-to-understand reason that two (or more) characters who might not typically be having sex are in this story. It becomes a go-to for authors and readers who want Porn Without Plot (PWP, which confusingly can also mean Porn With Plot).
However, this is the exact reason that some people are not fond of the trope at all. Some people desire plot with their smut, and some people even only like smut when they are reading an intricate plot that feels as though it demands that the sex scenes happen. For such people, the more complicated the plot, the better, and tropes such as Pon Farr that remove the complicated motivations that might bring two characters together is frustrating or even unnerving. Especially when it feels as though it removes any emotional engagement the characters might have.
MPreg
Pregnancy is an interesting trope. In some regards, it is the oldest kink, and it can be argued that all other kinks are a mere misdirection of a core instinct that all living things have to reproduce. After all, life only exists when it perpetuates itself, so we have millions of years of evolution driving humans to instinctively want to produce more humans. Assuming that I don’t have any aliens, AI, or some sort of sentient plant reading this, every single one of my readers only exists because, at some point, your parents went through this process to produce you. While it might not be universal, I imagine that a great number of those pregnancies were completely intentional and deliberate.
However, many people find the process unnerving and disgusting. Where one person might find the concept of a woman’s belly being filled with life beautiful, another might see the exact same situation as a horrific process of that same woman’s belly distending with the uncontrolled growth of a parasite.
I suspect that this is exacerbated by many current social and economic realities. In the modern day, an ill-timed pregnancy when a woman (and/or her partner) is unable to provide the physical, emotional, spatial, financial, or any other form of needed resource for her child can be a devastating occurrence that ruins the life of the parents, the child, and any future children. Many people have been conditioned for years to see pregnancy as a thing to be afraid of. Especially for people who go through abstinence-only sexual education, where far more emphasis is put on how scary pregnancy is and how much work raising a child will be than on how to have sex without producing a child by accident. There is a reason why many people call the prospect of potentially becoming unexpectedly pregnant a “pregnancy scare,” because it has become culturally ingrained to see pregnancy as a horrific prospect.
Of course, all of that is simply the controversial nature of pregnancy itself. There is an additional layer going on with the Omegaverse. Much of romantic and erotic fanfiction is written about M/M pairings (two men together), and expanding that into incorporating pregnancy tropes, regardless of how well that might match real-life biology, is not uncommon. The Omegaverse makes it common and normalized because Alphas and Omegas are treated as fundamentally separate sexes, so that any Alpha and Omega pair can result in the Omega becoming pregnant, regardless of whether they are male or female.
This has a great deal of appeal for some people. Those who are attracted to pregnancy-related tropes (whether for sexual or narrative reasons) while also being attracted to M/M couples (whether for sexual or narrative reasons) now have an easy way to reconcile the two. The Omegaverse has provided an established worldbuilding method for making this thing that typically cannot happen in real life (transmen being a rare exception) and turning that into a common occurrence. One the characters can simply be happy about rather than being surprised or horrified about.
However, in addition to all of the other problems some people have with pregnancy tropes, some people find it too difficult to reconcile the idea of pregnancy with a male body. Often, this comes with questions about the logistics of how the baby is grown and/or exits the body when a character lacks the typical organs and orifices used for such a process. And, in cases where the answers to these questions are explained in detail, some find such detailed alternative anatomy off-putting.
Bioessentialism
Bioessentialism is the concept that our minds and sense of self is, to some extent, shaped by our bodies. Sometimes, this trope is referred to as “The Mind is the Plaything of the Body” (a paraphrasing of Nietzsche), and it is also a key component of “Nature vs Nurture.” It can take a lot of different forms, but in the Omegaverse, it typically is portrayed in the form of the distinction between an Alpha and an Omega being one determined by biological factors (sometimes genetic, sometimes not). Since Alpha and Omega also come with distinct personalities and sociological differences, this means that a portion of who a person is as an individual when it comes to sexual relations is determined by how they were born.
Some people are very fond of this trope because it is a way of exploring the very real debate of Nature vs Nurture. It is a way to explore how instincts affect human behavior by changing what those instincts are and then observing how that changes the resulting behavior and the surrounding society. By having multiple different groups within a single story that have different manifestations of a fictional set of instincts, they can then be contrasted against each other to make for a far more detailed and nuanced exploration of the interplay between instinct, socialization, and personal choice.
However, others are not fond of the trope because they feel that expectations that people conform to the sort of person that their body dictates is a form of transphobia. Trans people have built a portion of their identity around the idea of identifying a mismatch between their body and their mind and then rejecting the body to preserve the mind. To see a story that depicts a body being able to dictate to the mind what it wants the mind to be, seems to imply the conclusion that a mismatch between the body and the mind is something wrong with the mind. As such, those who have identified the mismatch in themselves and concluded that the body is wrong find such implications unnerving, offensive, and potentially a sign of someone who harbors deeper threatening opinions for a way of life that is often threatened.
Defamiliarization of Gender Norms
Finally, the practice of defamiliarization is an exercise commonly practiced in Sociology where cultural norms from the author’s own culture are reframed in a way that makes them seem alien. This is considered an important exercise in questioning one’s own cultural bias and preparing to look at other cultures with an understanding that your own culture looks as alien to them as their culture looks to you. Some people take this further and turn it into an exercise in understanding their own culture more deeply by forcing the question of why certain things are done the way they are.
In this regard, gender norms are no different than any other societal norms and can be examined in the same way. The Omegaverse provides a potential method to do this by presenting Alpha and Omega as their own set of sexual differentiation separate from Male and Female. The author can then explore how the culture around the two of them forms while still having Male and Female present as a different axis of gender norms.
Some people find this a fascinating and intriguing process. There are those who have a general interest in Sociology that drives an interest in any defamiliarization thought experiment. However, there are also groups that have a specific interest in questioning gender norms. Those from the trans community who want to explore questioning what makes a gender a gender, and how different sets of gender expectations might manifest in society, sometimes find such thought experiments a useful way for them to sort out their own gender identity and how they want society to respond to said identity. Similarly, those from feminist or other progressive gender politics groups who have a vested interest in questioning and challenging established gender norms find explorations of societies where the gender norms are completely alien a useful tool in both sorting out what they want and figuring out how to explain it to others.
But, at the same time, some find that by establishing a different set of gender norms, the Omegaverse has established gender norms. There are those who find the exploration of gender norms in any context to be a reinforcement of the idea that gender norms should exist when they would rather society abandon the concept entirely. There are also those who feel as though the Alpha/Omega distinction ends up becoming a mirror of Male/Female under a different set of names and that the depiction of “alternative gender norms” has instead become an entrenchment of the existing gender norms that they wish to reject.
The Impact of These Tropes Combining
So, if every single one of these constituent tropes has the ability to specifically appeal to some readers and specifically reject others, what does that mean for the Omegaverse as a whole? Does it simply mean that the Omegaverse appeals to some readers while not appealing to others? I would say yes, but also that that is an oversimplification of the situation. Because of the diversity of tropes, I would argue that the Omegaverse has entered the uncomfortable situation where, sometimes, it is simultaneously attracting and driving away the same reader. This of course, results in a much more vehement dislike of the experience than simply not liking the entire thing.
As an example, look at the kinds of people attracted and driven away by Bioessentialism and Defamiliarization. Trans people are one of the major groups rejected by one but one of the major groups attracted by the other. Of course, the trans community is not one massive monolith where everyone thinks the same way. Some people might be drawn in by Defamiliarization while feeling neutral on Bioessentialism. Others might be driven away by Bioessentialism while feeling neutral on Defamiliarization. However, there are some who feel simultaneously pulled in by Defamiliarization and driven away by Bioessentialism.
This can potentially happen with any combination of the tropes listed here. Any given reader might feel pulled in by one trope and driven away by another. This results in readers who might see something in the tags or summary of a story that appeals to them and pulls them in, only to feel surprised by other elements of the Omegaverse. This is why “Don’t Like; Don’t Read” is not as effective here. It is because some readers think they have found what they like and maybe even see elements of what they like, but are being blindsided by what they don’t like. This leaves the readers confused and annoyed, and since the only thing they are able to find in common with how these fics are advertised is “Omegaverse,” they start to subconsciously associate the Omegaverse with tricking them into thinking they have found a story they will like when they have not.
My Personal Experience
And now, we come to what I mentioned earlier when I said that I am one such person. This is because I do not feel driven away by all of the tropes listed here, only some of them. There are other tropes that I find appealing and have become a big fan of in other contexts. So, I believe my own dislike of the Omegaverse stems from repeatedly finding something that sounds appealing due to some of the concepts involved, but then feeling driven away by other aspects of the story. In particular, I have a particular fondness for BDSM AUs, Bioessentialism, and Defamiliarization while finding the Sociology of Werewolf Smut and Fuck Or Die off-putting. The rest of the tropes, I am mostly neutral on, and my like or dislike of those tropes is mild enough to not have a major impact on how I will overall like or dislike a story.
My enjoyment of BDSM AU is rather straightforward. I have an interest in BDSM in real life, one that is stronger than my interest in general romance or sexual relations. I am somewhere on the Asexual spectrum (it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly where), and so I have a reduced interest in sex and romance in my life. However, I do find BDSM appealing and sometimes engage in platonic BDSM. This combines with my general deep interest in worldbuilding (which can be seen elsewhere on this blog) to give me a very deep interest in worlds that explore alternative cultures built around BDSM.
My interests in Bioessentialism and Defamiliarization are, to some extent, two sides of the same coin. I’ve spent a great deal of time studying animal physiology and behavior, and I have a strong academic interest in exploring how that connects to human physiology and behavior. I’ve observed patterns in animal behavior holding true for human behavior in ways that have convinced me that a lot of what humans think of as conscious decisions made from free will are actually just humans complying with their instincts without realizing it. I find Bioessentialism and Defamiliarization to be useful storytelling tools for exploring those ideas. Gender norms are simply one among many concepts in the debate of Nature vs Nurture that I have an interest in exploring.
However, due to my Asexuality, I have little interest in Porn Without Plot storytelling, and so Fuck Or Die tropes have little appeal to me. At best, I find them boring. At worst, I find them actively unnerving. That isn’t to say that I don’t have a deep understanding of why others might be into them, but they have little appeal for me. When handled incorrectly, such tropes will actively drive me out of a story.
But, it is the Sociology of Werewolf Smut that I have the most complicated relationship with. As might be evidenced by how detailed my explanation of the history of the terms “Alpha” and “Omega” got, I have a very complicated relationship with them. I have always had an interest in animal behavior, and I started to become drawn specifically to wolf behavior and sociology as a pre-teen. This was around the time that Dr. Mech was really pushing his updates to his research, and so as someone with a new interest in the field, I kind of came in in the middle of that being an active topic of debate.
In high school, I also encountered the brand of toxic masculinity that led to boys calling themselves “Alpha Males.” This was a few years before the Omegaverse even got started, and it was a few years after that that I encountered the genre for the first time, so I spent about a decade mostly just associating the term “Alpha Male” with toxic masculinity, an association that is difficult to shake. I did occasionally encounter pre-Omegaverse werewolf literature that used Alphas as a term for dominant werewolves, but they typically were filled with some toxic masculinity themselves, and so did not do much to shake the association.
I’ve also, at times, encountered the anti-wolf propaganda that uses such terms as part of their trying to portray wolves as generally violent and malicious creatures. So, I’ve grown accustomed to seeing cases where dominant wolves were referred to as “Alphas,” often associated with such propaganda. That’s not necessarily universal, since it took some time for the scientific community to drop “Alpha” from technical literature on wolf behavior, but it is an association that I struggle to shake.
So, if nothing else, I have a hard time being comfortable reading stories that make heavy use of the characters considering themselves Alphas or Omegas. It mostly makes me think too much about toxic masculinity, and if I manage to shake that thought, my mind instead drifts to the general misunderstanding and unfair hatred of wolves in the real world.
I did also take the time to ask my trans roommate her opinion on the genre, since I was using the general reaction of some trans people as an example of how different people react differently. She said roughly, “Sometimes it’s cute, sometimes it’s creepy and abusive” (paraphrased from a slight ramble distracted by Minecraft). So, I think she falls under someone who is sometimes drawn into the genre but sometimes pushed away, though perhaps less vehemently than I am.
What Does This Mean For Authors and Readers?
I don’t want to tell people that they can’t write what appeals to them. Most certainly, there are some people out there for whom all of the constituent tropes of the Omegaverse are appealing. I would say that for anyone reading this who falls into that group, just keep doing what you’ve been doing and don’t worry about people like me. Maybe you’ll have a better understanding of why some of us are steering away from the content you enjoy, but you should feel no shame in continuing to enjoy it.
It’s the authors who are more on the fringe of the genre that I would advise to take a more detailed note of this analysis. If you are someone who has a particularly strong interest in one or two of the tropes involved but not in the other ones, I would say that you might be better served by dropping the Omegaverse elements that you don’t actually need for that story. Just focus on those tropes and advertise your fic as such. Then, you will be better able to draw in the people interested in the tropes that you want to write about while not scaring away potential readers who don’t like the other tropes.
For anyone who is like me and likes some of these tropes while not liking others, I hope that this might be helpful in better refining your searches for fics you want to read. Hopefully, you might have an easier time explaining to those you talk to about fanfiction tropes exactly what you like and dislike.
For anyone who dislikes that Omegaverse as a whole and finds that you fit into the dislike group for each of the constituent tropes, I guess this entire area of fiction is simply not for you. Perhaps you have a better understanding of that now and know some more trope names to avoid.
For anyone who managed to stumble into this post while having no idea what the Omegaverse is, welcome to the internet. Have a look around. Anything that brain of yours can think of can be found. Seriously, though, I’m sorry for accidentally dragging you into a complicated topic that has been the source of some very lively debates in certain corners of the web. Maybe I’ve intrigued you and you’re about to go poking places that you never thought of before. Maybe I’ve disgusted you, and you’ve been staring at this rant with a horrified fascination. In either case, I hope you have a wonderful day.
Crayshack 