Though occasionally that cliche is done well. The first that springs to mind is With Six You Get Eggroll, in due South.
Part of what makes that story special is that it shows that the "happily ever after" is hella hard work, requires constant adjustment and compromise, and that kids don't always respond to things the way you want. What it also shows, however, is that the "happily ever after" couple find it all worth it, when all is said and done.
ETA: What Dana said also applies. Part of what people who write schmoopy Buffyverse fic tend to forget is that an unhappy ending is pretty much part and parcel of the whole Slayer gig.
Also, Ray and Fraser aren't cops anymore in that story, right? They've relocated to the boonies.
I sometimes enjoy the happily ever after with white picket fence cliche, but I think I'm discerning enough to not see it when it's not the author's intent.
Fraser's still a Mountie, but they're definitely in the boonies. Which is another thing, really. Fraser was always set up as that kind of guy, who could easily walk away from the whole "hero" thing. Michael/Nikita, Buffy/Spike, John/Aeryn, not so much.
The Iolokus series in
X-Files
deals in a nice (grim, gritty, deadly, painful) way with kids and the heroic lifestyle.
Right, Connie. But it addresses it, which many of the picket fence stories don't.
You can't slot "baby" into the format of many of these shows and still have it work. And Iolokus recognizes that. It's more than just hiring a nanny.
I sometimes enjoy the happily ever after with white picket fence cliche, but I think I'm discerning enough to not see it when it's not the author's intent.
Wrod. Sometimes, the white picket fence and all it stands for is brought into a story in a way to show how impossible or empty it would be for Our Heroes, but some people are incapable of enjoying irony.
There are times when I enjoy schmoop for schmoop's sake (is the term WAFF known in these parts?) in much the same way I might enjoy downing a pint of Ben and Jerry's when the hormones are a hopping. That said, certain fandoms support schmoop better than others. Due South can support schmoopy, happy fics much better than, say, Hard Core Logo.
WAFF as in Warm And Fuzzy Feelings? That really takes me back to my old FoLC (Fan of Lois & Clark) days.
There seems to be a whole sub-genre of fanfic stories in a lot of fandoms where, for example, John and Aeryn or Buffy and Spike fall in love, get married, have kids, and live happily ever after -- all without acknowledging the inherent risk of having children when you're a hero.
Hee!
And therein we have pretty much the WHOLE motivation behind writing Absolution.
Which I still like best of all my stupid stories.
Shmoop in Hard Core Logo is just wrong.
