Hey, everybody! Antoni, here, with another Powerpuff Girls fanfiction recommendation. I'll be taking a look at Loosen up Buttercup written by xxTommiexx, published on March 26, 2013, and updated on June 24 of the same year. It's rated T. It's in English. It's in 12 chapters and the main pairing is Butch/Buttercup with some hints of Brick/Blossom and Boomer/Bubbles. Other characters involved are Mitch Mitchelson, Princess Morbucks, and Dexter from Dexter's Laboratory. All the characters in the fanfic are teenagers between 17 to 18 years old, and for that, there will be swearing to be found in this fanfic.
Ah, Butch and Buttercup. When it comes to fanworks involving the greens, they have an interesting dynamic. A lot of people interpret their relationship as on-and-off with a lot of belligerent sexual tension enough to give any Takahashi couple a run for their money. And boy, do I enjoy Butchercup like there's no tomorrow. When one combines Butch's untamed bruiser nature with Buttercup's tomboyish bruiser cuteness, it's certainly a fun yet dysfunctional pair up of great interest, as there is neither a dull nor syrupy moment to be found with them. One can tell that with pairings like this and Blossick it's not easy being in a relationship and it's no fairy tale, as things need to be patched up for reconciliation's sakes and it takes a lot for two people to be on the same page no matter how tough or demanding circumstances may be. With that said, let's get on to what I thought about the fanfic.
Butch and Buttercup have been in a relationship for what seems to be barely a year. Prior to this, a freak accident occurred in Professor Utonium's laboratory, which decreased Townsville's crime rate as well as turned the Rowdyruff Boys into the side of good. Throughout the course of the story, Butch's and Buttercup's relationship is constantly being put to the test riddled with an old flame Buttercup had at the beginning of her high school years and abundant trust issues. Thus, causing the two to be at odds with each other, especially where Buttercup's attitude is concerned. Meanwhile, Brick, Blossom, Boomer, and Bubbles are doing their very best to ensure that Butch's and Buttercup's relationship does not go haywire. This story is essentially The Powerpuff Girls meets The OC, 90210, and many other teen melodrama you can think of, given the will they or will they not situation that Butch and Buttercup find themselves in. I will give the story credit for not sugar coating how tough being in a relationship really is, as arguments will occur, trust between a couple will be tested, and there will be a tendency to be defensive when push comes to shove. The first chapter could have used an establishing paragraph to indicate where and what time does the action takes place, who are the main characters and how do they present themselves, and what is the overall mood in the beginning. Just going straight into dialogue ruins the initial world building the story has to offer. Then there is the whole reveal in the climax in terms of the Rowdyruff Boys and the Powerpuff Girls powers, which was an exposition dump of what really happened, and the possibility of a sequel, which was never made. I'm very sure xxTommiexx wanted to focus particularly on Butch's and Buttercup's roller coaster of a relationship, but it would've been nice if the whole backstory were more fleshed out from the beginning and if there were also a continuation of this whole story in the form of a separate story, as the ending, though well done, made me feel like I could have wanted more.
I do have some favorite moments in this fanfic such as Buttercup adamantly telling Butch to stop smoking in both the flashback in Chapter 2 and after Butch's beatdown with Mitch in Chapter 5, as she does care a great deal for him, in spite of her crabby outer shell. Even small moments like the flashback of her and Butch watching a soccer game, Blossom's pep talk to Buttercup, as well as Brick's and Boomer's word of friendship are enough to make me feel elated. Let's not forget about Butch's and Mitch's fight in Chapter 5, which I do have playing on my head. In terms of the final chapter, I am not going to spoil it, but let's just say that it was really sweet and it put a nice smile on my face for our main couple.
The characters all maintained their charm with a few tweaks. To say that Butch is the designated male hero dampens the overall quality of his characterization presented in this fanfic. He keeps his impulsive, brawns first nature to a T, yet it is coupled with his brand of nobility, sensitivity, and charm, which make him all the more lovable and diverse as a male protagonist to the point where I not only admire him but root for him as well. He is a flawed hero, who does his best to protect Buttercup from any ills, and I really love his characterization in this fanfic.
It is so simple to mark Buttercup as pushy and easily defensive, but as the toughest fighter, needing help from others as well as putting her guard down are not things she is bent on doing. Some people, whether it would be Butch, Blossom, or even Mitch, call her out on it. It's nice to see that the author kept her tough, tomboyish, fiercely independent, sarcastic yet impulsive and at times cynical front intact, and couple that with a few moments of sensitivity and relatability.
I, as the reader, was completely invested with Butch's and Buttercup's roller coaster of a relationship. They love each other to bits, yet they break up and get back together, and it's a crazy ride these two go through. But, like I said, their romance is not an idealistic fairy-tale, it's real and at times raw, as there are couples who go through bouts of distrust and anger, yet they manage to patch things up.
Mitch Mitchelson is given the villainous third wheel role. Oh yes, in the original cartoon, Mitch had one moment where he went full on nasty and that was "Gettin' Twiggy with It". In that episode, Miss Keane has assigned him to take care of the school hamster, Twiggy, despite Blossom's, Buttercup's, and Bubbles' dissuasion of having him with this task. The girls' suspicions are legitimate as he tortures Twiggy and even uses a rocket to flush her down the toilet, where the sewer chemicals mutate her to get revenge on Mitch. However, in terms of the rest of the episodes, Mitch can either be the jerkass bully or just neutrally-sided, all the while being good friends with Buttercup, thus making him the popular choice to be the third wheel for Butch/Buttercup. In this fanfic, he is quite the sleazy delinquent who is lusting after Buttercup and an alcoholic, and every time he tries to make a move on her, she rejects him bluntly and coldly with an acid-dripping tongue. His brand of sleaze does make him rather frightening as a villainous third wheel, as, slight spoilers, he used to date Buttercup when they began high school, but they broke up. I would've loved to have a more specific reason as to why Buttercup and Mitch would split, and why he would dare trouble her so much. Nonetheless, Mitch serves his purpose rather well.
Princess Morbucks does not have a huge appearance in this fic, as she does have one scene with Butch after the initial breakup. However, she does keep her bratty and callous nature intact for that one scene.
The other characters serve their purpose magnificently. Brick does keep his cockiness and teasing, but it's also backed up by witty sarcasm, a deep concern for Butch, and some platonic moments between him and Buttercup, thus showing the strong friendship these two have. Blossom remains the big sister who is level-headed and does her best fix things up between Butch and Buttercup, plus she swears in this fanfic, which I thought was rather out of character for someone as elegant, ladylike, yet equally tough as Blossom. Boomer has a great amount of kindness and sincerity, which make him so endearing not only as a member of the Puff Ruff team but also a great friend to Buttercup. Even more so, he even has some funny lines. Bubbles maintains her signature cheery and charming disposition. When all is said and done, it is wonderful to see the dynamics Brick, Butch, Blossom, Buttercup, Boomer, and Bubbles have with each other, rather than just constantly focus on Butch and Buttercup alone. Together, these six characters certainly contributed a great deal of strength to the story.
Now with such praise, I have to give especially to the characters, there were some issues I had with this fanfic. Those were missing words and letters, some missing punctuations as well as punctuation errors, and a few capitalization errors. In spite of these, at least the layout was decent, as I could follow along well, and it's not a huge blob of text.
So, overall, if you are a fan of melodramatic PPG fanfics, Butch/Buttercup, some teen drama, and having a love triangle being set for Butch, Buttercup, and Mitch, then this is for you. I give this fanfic a grade of A-. In spite of the technical issues, I can say for certain that I enjoyed this fanfic thanks to the characters of not only Butch and Buttercup, but also Brick, Blossom, Boomer, and Bubbles. Plus, Mitch was enjoyable as a sleazeball.
Well, that's all for now, tune in later for yet another Butch/Buttercup fanfiction recommendation, with hints of Brick/Blossom, called She Ain't You written by SilverTonguedHunter. Until then, this is Antoni aka the Brick, Butch, Blossom, and Buttercup FanFiction Critic and Recommender saying have a lovely day.
https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9136733/1/Loosen-up-Buttercup