Look I’m back with more!
Surrounding the idea of heat, we started to look into what caused heat, because it varies in different versus. As you see above, sometimes heats and ruts are on a regular cycle, with varying regularity, and sometimes only when population levels demand it. This idea of self-regulating biology is actually not new, as there are several species that only reproduce when enough resources or available partners are available. It also sets up a different relationship dynamic than regular heats, because it gives the omega choosing power in who their mate is. Some alphas present evidence, gifts rather, that they’re good providers, and the omega has the power to accept or deny these gifts. It creates something of much more formal courting ritual than the flirt-and-fuck of many other verses.
From there, we started branching into Betas and societal roles. As you’ve seen mentioned, Omegas are generally considered bottom of the heap, alphas at the top, and betas are the generally ignored middle class. This steps into my favorite part of the panel, because there was a LOT to discuss around betas.
First thing we look at is how alphas and omegas are considered the main alignments because ~shipping~ and ~sexy times~ while betas are largely ignored, often even left out entirely or only mentioned in passing. In some cases, betas are infertile and made to be the caretakers of the verse. This also leads to fics where beta characters work against stereotypes and assignments they feel oppressive (“We shouldn’t have to take care of the babies while these guys fuck all the day long.”)
Going on from that, there are some versus where betas are just less intense versions of alphas and omegas, and are considered the more sane of any of the three. While alphas and omegas face overwhelming biological imperatives to breed, betas sort of sit off to the side and go “you’re at it again? jesus guys.” In some cases, they don’t have much of a roll in a story beyond providing a reference point to when behavior becomes extreme, sometimes to be the level-headed adviser to a character since they aren’t as clouded by biology. They’re also often considered the most independent characters because they form emotional relationships before sexual ones, which is the the opposite of almost all alpha/omega pairings.
And finally, we step into MY favorite part: betas as the creator of a “whole” relationship. While most versus focus on an alpha and an omega, some look at ABO as being the ideal relationship, the one that makes you and your family unit perfectly whole. The beta completes levels of attraction between alpha and omega characters, serves as a standard for communication between them, and generally rounds out a relationship otherwise troubled with extremes. Why is this my favorite topic? Polyamory! While we’ve been exploring some ideas of gender roles and social status, to me, throwing the beta in as the final part to a strong relationship is where we start when really, seriously normalizing things we otherwise consider socially unacceptable in real life. The very nature of the verse allows us to explore ideas we may not initially be comfortable with and explore them with a new interpretation, where ideas we aren’t comfortable HAVE to be present in the fic. Then we start to see why these idea might work out of choice, rather than necessity.Omegaverse, also known as A/B/O (an abbreviation for "alpha/beta/omega"), is a subgenre of speculative erotic fiction, and originally a subgenre of erotic slash fan fiction. Stories in the genre are premised on societies wherein humans are divided into a dominance hierarchy of dominant "alphas", neutral "betas", and submissive "omegas",[1] determining how they interact with one other in romantic, erotic and sexual contexts.[2]
Omegaverse fiction pairs traditional genders such as male or female with a "secondary gender", or a "second dynamic", that manifests during puberty.[3] It's usually chosen from one of the following:[4][5][6][7]
- Alpha (α): socially (and in some interpretations, even biologically) dominant, physically built, short-tempered and a natural leader;
- Beta (β): depending on the story, they are regular human beings, or have a mix of Alpha and Omega traits, or their own unique traits;
- Omega (Ω): submissive and gentle, calm and a peacemaker.
Since Omegaverse is a type of folksonomy, some of its aspects are included or excluded at the discretion of the story author.[6] Sometimes Betas are absent, or other intermediate genders such as Deltas and Gammas are added.[8]
| Y | N | Y / N | Y |
| Y | N | N | Y |
| Y | Y | N | Y |
Omegaverse fiction typically focuses on wolf or other canid-like behavior in humans, especially as it pertains to sexual intercourse and sexuality, which is described as instinctual, responding to animalistic physiological stimuli.[1][2] This includes rutting and heat cycles, pheromonal attraction between Alphas and Omegas,[10] penises with knots ("knotting"),[1] scent marking,[11] imprinting,[6] breeding, mating rites, pack structures[12] and potentially permanent psychic bonds with a mate.[4] Between Alphas and Betas, only females can carry on a pregnancy, but male Omegas are often envisaged as being able to become pregnant via an uterus connected to the rectum,[12][13][14] and Alphas can impregnate regardless of their main gender.[8] To make penetration and impregnation easier, male Omegas often have self-lubricating anuses.[7]
The genre often features other fantasy elements, such as the presence of werewolves or other fantastical creatures.[1] Some works introduce a rigid caste system, where Alphas are depicted as the upper class elites while Omegas are at the bottom tier and face discrimination and oppression because of their physiology, creating an example of biological determinism.[5][15][16] In darker stories, this results in non-consensual or dubiously consensual intercourses, forced pregnancies, Omegas kidnapping and sexual slavery.[17][18]
Omegaverse works are most frequently focused on male-male couples composed of an Alpha and an Omega,[4] though heterosexual Omegaverse works have been produced,[11] and by 2013, about 10% were labeled male/female.[6] Some subvert the genre tropes, telling stories about illicit relationships between Alphas, Omegas who hide their smell using chemical pheromones so that they are not a victim of biological prejudices,[19] or dominant Omegas and submissive Alphas.[2] Non-traditional couples are often featured in Japanese Omegaverse works.[20]
While the terms "A/B/O" and "Omegaverse" can be used interchangeably, the first one often refers only to the sexual dynamics, while the second one is preferred when the story is set in a new ideological world.[10] Some prefer to avoid use of the term "A/B/O" as its spelling resembles a racial slur towards Aboriginal Australians.[7]
Genre tropes used in the Omegaverse were already present in the late 1960s in the fandom of the American television series Star Trek. The 1967 episode "Amok Time" introduces the concept of pon farr, the Vulcan mating cycle wherein Vulcan males must mate or die. Pon farr became a popular plot conceit for fan works in the Star Trek fandom, particularly fan fiction focused on the Kirk/Spock pairing. The concept of mating and heat cycles among humans was subsequently adopted by other fandoms, and later became a staple of the Omegaverse subgenre.[21] Ursula K. Le Guin also wrote, in her 1969 novel The Left Hand of Darkness, about an extraterrestrial androgynous world with hermaphroditic characters and mating cycles named kemmer.[2]
The origin of the Omegaverse is typically attributed to the fandom surrounding the American television series Supernatural, as a fusion between werewolves and the male pregnancy subgenre of erotic fan fiction;[1][22] the first works recognized as A/B/O were published in mid-2010.[4] That year in May, a writing prompt was shared on a LiveJournal community dedicated to the series, mentioning "alpha" males having knots on their penises, and "bitch males" without the knots, inspiring user tehdirtiestsock to write I ain't no lady, but you'd be the tramp, a real person fiction work focused on actors Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles as an Alpha and an Omega, which was published on July 24.[2][16] Despite not using the term "omega", the story created many of the characteristics later associated with the Omegaverse genre.[2] Over the next few months, other anonymous authors shared similar stories, until on November 9 a new writing prompt mentioned Alpha, Beta and Omega men for the first time, spurring the creation of three works. By June 2011, the term "Omegaverse" and its dynamics had become commonplace; the following month, the first femslash Omegaverse work was published, and the first use of the tropes outside the Supernatural fandom was recorded.[7] The genre subsequently expanded in popularity to other fan communities: first to those focused around Sherlock and X-Men: First Class, then it quickly reached other fandoms like those of television series Hannibal, Teen Wolf, Glee, Doctor Who and movie The Avengers.[1][7] In 2014 it gained strong traction in Japan.[20]
Omegaverse has become both extremely popular and controversial in fandom circles. Some condemn it as revolting and sick, affirming that it reinforces patriarchal values and a rape culture,[23] objecting to its roots in bestiality fiction and the power imbalances between genders.[4] Conversely, others appreciate how it deconstructs bodies and gender roles, offering subversive social commentary on queer identity and oppression.[23][24]
Academic opinions are equally divided between those who believe Omegaverse shows a new type of gender essentialism combined with homophobic and heteronormative elements, and those who see the space to give it a transgender reading.[4] According to researcher Milena Popova, "the features of the A/B/O genre allow for the exploration of themes of power, desire, pleasure, intimacy, romance, control, and consent in a variety of ways",[25] and it's used by writers and readers "as a tool to articulate and think through consent issues in unequal relationships".[26] Similarly, Laura Campillo Arnaiz argues that dark Omegaverse works serve to gain control on the feelings of helplessness and humiliation that characterize it, creating a cathartic experience.[27]
Angie Fazekas wrote that, "In the omegaverse, fans use traditional tropes of gender and sexuality to imagine a universe where queer sexuality is the norm and normative gender roles are often skewed and upended",[24] but fail to offer real progressiveness since, like most of the other fan fictions, their works are predominantly focused on relationships between white men.[28]
As of July 2018[update], over 39,000 Omegaverse fan works had been published on the fan fiction website Archive of Our Own,[7] and over 70,000 as of 2020.[1] In addition to these derivative works, Omegaverse has emerged as its own genre of original commercial erotic fiction: the 2007 novel With Caution by J.L. Langley is noted as the first commercially published novel with Omegaverse tropes.[5] Moreover, roughly 200 Omegaverse novels were published on Amazon from January to June 2020.[1] Omegaverse has also emerged as a subgenre of both commercial and non-commercial yaoi (manga featuring male-male couples).[20][29][30]
Beginning in 2017, the "Dom/Sub Universe" subgenre gained popularity, particularly in yaoi works in Japan; it uses BDSM elements, positing dominant and submissive as secondary genders, and draws inspirations from Omegaverse in its depiction of caste systems.[31] In the Korean "Cakeverse", a small part of the human population is divided into "forks", who have no sense of taste, and "cakes", people with a particular flavor that makes them irresistible to "forks".[32]
Copyright lawsuit
In 2016, author Addison Cain released Born to be Bound, the first novel of a series adapted from one of her fan fictions that features Omegaverse genre tropes. In April 2018, Cain and her publisher Blushing Books filed a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) notice against author Zoey Ellis for her 2018 novel Crave to Conquer.[11][33] Cain accused Ellis of plagiarism and copyright infringement, arguing that both Born to be Bound and Crave to Conquer focus on a central couple that is an Omega female and Alpha male, and include the concepts of Omegas hiding their secondary sex by use of suppressants, and Omegas being rare and valued mates. The first two installments of Ellis' series were removed from online sellers for several months, and the pre-orders of the third installment were cancelled, as a result of the DMCA claim.[6]
Ellis and her publisher Quill Ink Books subsequently brought a lawsuit against Cain and Blushing Books for damages due to lost revenue and reputational harm, with representation from Quill Ink contending that Cain had no legitimate claim of ownership over the Omegaverse genre. Blushing Books settled in 2019, admitting that there had been no plagiarisms or copyright infringements, and paid an undisclosed monetary amount in damages to both Quill Ink and Ellis.[1] In September 2019, Ellis and Quill Ink filed a separate civil lawsuit against Cain, arguing that the DMCA copyright claim was false and malicious; the lawsuit was dismissed by a Virginia court in 2019.[34] The lawsuits were covered by The New York Times, which noted that a decision in Cain's favor could have set a significant legal precedent for commercial works based on fan-generated material; the Times further noted the case as an example of "how easily intellectual property law can be weaponized by authors seeking to take down their rivals."[1]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Alter, Alexandra (23 May 2020). "A Feud in Wolf-Kink Erotica Raises a Deep Legal Question". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 11 July 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f Valens, Ana (21 December 2020). "Welcome to the 'omegaverse,' the kinky erotica genre reimagining bodies". The Daily Dot.
- ^ Algavi, Leila; Volkova, Irina; Kadyrova, Shuanatl; Rastorgueva, Natalya (2021). "Online literary creativity of digital natives: genre and thematic analysis". SHS Web of Conferences. Vol. 101, no. 03048. p. 6. doi:10.1051/shsconf/202110103048. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f Popova 2018, The Omegaverse
- ^ a b c "《2019年版》おすすめオメガバースBL漫画17選【初心者向けから上級者向けまで】" [Top 17 Recommended BL Omegaverse Manga for 2019]. BookLive! (in Japanese). 11 July 2018. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Quill Ink Books Limited vs Rachelle Soto A/K/A Addison Cain (United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia 9/09/19).Text
- ^ a b c d e f Fazekas 2020, pp. 97–99, The Rise of the Omegaverse
- ^ a b Sung, Morgan (26 April 2021). "What The Hell Is The Omegaverse, And Why Is It All Over TikTok?". Mashable India. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
- ^ "BLにおける「オメガバースの事情」【アニメイト編集部BL塾・応用編】". Animate Times (in Japanese). Retrieved 9 April 2022.
- ^ a b Busse 2013, pp. 289–290, Alpha Males and the Fannish Hive Mind
- ^ a b c Tanjeem, Namera (18 July 2019). "The Omegaverse Plagiarism Lawsuit, One Year On". Book Riot. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- ^ a b Shrayber, Mark (18 June 2014). "'Knotting' Is the Weird Fanfic Sex Trend That Cannot Be Unseen". Jezebel. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
- ^ "男も妊娠する世界…BLの人気設定「オメガバース」ってご存知ですか" (in Japanese). 10 July 2018. Retrieved 5 April 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
- ^ "2ページ目：BLにおける「オメガバースの事情」【アニメイト編集部BL塾・応用編】 | アニメイトタイムズ". Animate Times (in Japanese). Retrieved 7 April 2022.
- ^ "傷心教師の赴任先は、妖し男子が集まる学園…羽純ハナの最新BL、ドラマCD化も決定". Natalie (in Japanese). 6 December 2018. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
- ^ a b Campillo Arnaiz 2018, pp. 118–120, Star Trek — Always Star Trek
- ^ Campillo Arnaiz 2018, pp. 122–123, Biology Is Identity Is Destiny
- ^ Fazekas 2020, p. 104, The Case of Slavery Alternate Universes
- ^ Busse 2013, p. 294, Omegaverse: The Perfect Storm
- ^ a b c "発情・妊娠・身分差だけじゃない!! 日本で進化中の「オメガバース」を徹底解析" [Not only estrus, pregnancy, and status difference!! A thorough analysis of the evolving "Omegaverse" in Japan]. Chil Chil (in Japanese). 3 January 2018. Archived from the original on 24 July 2022. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
- ^ Busse 2013, p. 290, Pon Farr as Ur-Trope
- ^ Busse 2013, p. 291, The Animal in All of Us
- ^ a b Fathallah, Judith (8 January 2017). "The White Man at the Centre of the World: Masculinity in Sherlock". Fanfiction and the Author: How Fanfic Changes Popular Cultural Texts. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press. pp. 65–66. doi:10.5117/9789089649959. ISBN 978-90-485-2908-7. OCLC 1003641144.
- ^ a b Fazekas 2020, pp. 100–101, Claims of Progressiveness
- ^ Popova 2018, Consent and the Omegaverse
- ^ Popova 2018, Negotiating disjunctures in sexual scripts
- ^ Campillo Arnaiz 2018, p. 124, Sexual Fantasies
- ^ Fazekas 2020, pp. 101–102, Two White Guys
- ^ "New Omegaverse(A/B/O) Titles Coming to Renta" (Press release). Anime News Network. 22 December 2019. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- ^ "オメガバースといえば…"ビーボーイオメガバースコミックス"！2019年4月10日より第3期コミックス刊行開始！1作目「きみはもう噛めない」（あさじまルイ・著）は超待望の..." [Speaking of Omegaverse... "B-boy Omegaverse Comics"! The third comic will be published from April 10, 2019! The first work "You can't bite anymore" (written by Rui Asajima) is the long-awaited first comic★]. PR Times. 10 April 2019. Retrieved 6 April 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
- ^ "【作品追加】本能… 抗えない究極の主従関係！ Dom/Subユニバースが話題" [[Addition of works] Instincts... The ultimate master-slave relationship that cannot be resisted! The Dom / Sub Universe is a hot topic]. Chil Chil (in Japanese). 22 January 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
- ^ "オメガに続け!?甘々、シリアスなんでもござれ「ケーキバース」とは" [Following Omega!? What is the sweet and serious "Cakeverse"]. Chil Chil (in Japanese). 3 November 2016. Retrieved 6 April 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
- ^ Dalisay, Butch (6 July 2020). "Trouble in literary wolf-land". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- ^ "Quill Ink Books, Ltd. v. Soto, Case No. 1:19-cv-476 | Casetext Search + Citator". casetext.com. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
- Busse, Kristina (26 November 2013). "Pon Farr, Mpreg, and the rise of the Omegaverse". Fic: Why Fanfiction is Taking Over the World (PDF). By Jamieson, Anne. United States: Smart Pop. ISBN 978-1939529190.
- Campillo Arnaiz, Laura (2018). "When the Omega Empath Met the Alpha Doctor: An Analysis of the Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics in the Hannibal Fandom". The darker side of slash fan fiction: essays on power, consent and the body. By Spacey, Ashton. pp. 116–139. ISBN 1-4766-7121-4. OCLC 1005299643.
- Fazekas, Angie (2020). "Alpha/Beta/Omega: Racialized Narratives and Fandom's Investment in Whiteness". Now in Color: A Collection of Voices. By Pande, Rukmini. University of Iowa Press. pp. 95–108. doi:10.2307/j.ctv193rr0q.12. ISBN 978-1-60938-728-0.
- Popova, Milena (3 April 2018). "'Dogfuck rapeworld': Omegaverse fanfiction as a critical tool in analyzing the impact of social power structures on intimate relationships and sexual consent". Porn Studies. 5 (2): 175–191. doi:10.1080/23268743.2017.1394215. ISSN 2326-8743.
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