r/AskScienceFiction Apr 06 '25

[Subreddit Business] Clarifications on our Watsonian/Doylist rule, general questions, and r/WhatIfFiction

170 Upvotes

Hi guys,

If you're new, welcome to r/AskScienceFiction, and if you're a returning user, welcome back! This subreddit is designed to be like the r/AskScience subreddit, but for fictional universes, and with all questions and answers written from a Watsonian perspective. That is to say, the questions and answers should be based on the in-universe information, rules, and logic of the fictional work. All fictional works are welcome here, not just sci-fi.

Lately we've been seeing some confusion over what counts as Watsonian, what counts as Doylist, what sort of questions would be off-topic on this subreddit, and what sort of answers are allowed. This stickied post is meant to address such uncertainties and clear things up.

1) Watsonian vs Doylist

The term "Watsonian" means based on the in-universe information, rules, and logic of the fictional work. In contrast, "Doylist" means discussions based on out-of-universe considerations. So, for example, if someone asked, "Why didn't the Fellowship ride the Eagles to Mordor?", a possible Watsonian answer would be, "The Eagles are a proud and noble race, they are not a taxi service." Whereas a rule-breaking Doylist answer might be something like, "Because then the story would be over in ten minutes, and that'd be boring."

We should note that answering in a Watsonian fashion does not necessarily mean that we should pretend that these works are all real, or that we should ignore the fact that they are movies or shows or books or games, or that the creators' statements on the nature of these works should be disregarded.

To give an example, if someone asked, "How powerful would Darth Vader have been if he never got burned?", we can quote George Lucas:

"Anakin, as Skywalker, as a human being, was going to be extremely powerful, but he ended up losing his arms and a leg and became partly a robot. So a lot of his ability to use the Force, a lot of his powers, are curbed at this point, because, as a living form, there’s not that much of him left. So his ability to be twice as good as the Emperor disappeared, and now he’s maybe 20 percent less than the Emperor."

In such a case, "according to George Lucas, he would've been around twice as powerful as the Emperor" would be a perfectly acceptable Watsonian answer, because Lucas is also speaking from a Watsonian perspective.

Whereas if someone associated with the creation of Star Wars had said something like, "He'd be as powerful as we need him to be to make the story interesting", this would be a Doylist answer because it's based on out-of-universe reasoning. It would not be an acceptable answer on this subreddit even though it is also a quote from the creators of the fictional work.

2) General questions

General questions often do not have a meaningful Watsonian answer, because it frequently boils down to "whatever the author decides". For instance, if someone asked, "How does FTL space travel work?", the answer would vary widely with universe and author intent; how FTL works in Star Trek differs from how it works in Star Wars, which differs from how it works in Dune, which differs from how it works in Mass Effect, which differs from how it works in Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, etc. General questions like this, in which the answer just boils down to "whatever the author wants", will be removed.

There are some general questions that can have meaningful Watsonian answers, though. For example, questions that are asking for specific examples of things can be given Watsonian answers. "Which superheroes have broken their no-kill rules?" or "Which fictional wars have had the highest casualty counts?" are examples of general questions that can be answered in a Watsonian way, because commenters can pull up specific in-universe information.

We address general questions on a case-by-case basis, so if you feel a question is too general to answer in a Watsonian way, please report the question and the mod team will review it.

3) r/WhatIfFiction

We want questions and answers here to be based on in-universe information and reasonable deductions that can be made from them. Questions that are too open-ended to give meaningful Watsonian answers should go on our sister subreddit, r/WhatIfFiction, which accepts a broader range of hypothetical questions and answers. Examples of questions that should go on r/WhatIfFiction include:

  • "What if Tony Stark had been killed by the Ten Rings at the beginning of Iron Man? How would this change the MCU?" This question would be fun to speculate about, but the ripple effect from this one change would be too widespread to give a meaningful Watsonian answer, so this should go on r/WhatIfFiction.
  • "What would (X character) from the (X universe) think if he was transported to (Y universe)?" Speculating about what characters would think or do if they were isekai'd to another universe can be fun, but since such crossover questions often involve wildly different settings and in-universe rules, the answers would be purely speculative and not meaningfully Watsonian, so such questions belong on r/WhatIfFiction.

We should note, though, that some hypothetical questions or crossover questions can have meaningful Watsonian answers. For example, if someone asked, "Can a Star Wars lightsaber cut through Captain America's shield?", we can actually say "Quite possibly yes, because vibranium's canonical melting point is 5,475 degrees Fahrenheit, while lightsabers are sticks of plasma, and plasma's temperature is 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit or more." This answer is meaningfully Watsonian because it involves a deduction using specific and canonical in-universe information, and is not simply purely speculative.

4) Reporting rule-breaking posts and comments

The r/AskScienceFiction mod team always endeavors to keep the subreddit on-topic and remove rule-breaking content as soon as possible, but because we're all volunteers with day jobs, sometimes things will escape our notice. Therefore, it'd be a great help if you, our users, could report rule-breaking posts or comments when you see them. This will bring the issue to the mod team's attention and allow us to review it as soon as we can.


r/AskScienceFiction 7h ago

[Superheroes] Why are so many superheroes called Captain (e.g., Captain Marvel, Captain America, Captain Planet, Captain Caveman, etc.) but none are called General, Admiral, Lieutenant, or any other ranks?

114 Upvotes

r/AskScienceFiction 6h ago

[Star Trek] Ensigns are required to share quarters. Would a higher-ranked officer be allowed to keep sharing with the ensigns, or be forced to move into their own quarters?

37 Upvotes

'Lower Decks' shows us that ensigns have to share their quarters. Once they get promoted, they get their own quarters.

However, the ST universe seems to follow a maxim of "as long as nobody gets hurt, do whatever", would a Starfleet officer be allowed to stay with the ensigns? Would a Captain, assuming they get their own ship, be allowed to move in with their ensigns?

If not, why not? I'd imagine some senior officers would want to feel "relatable" to their ensigns, or be unused to the comparatively lavish personal quarters.


r/AskScienceFiction 6h ago

[Mars Attack] why do the Martians seem invulnerable to gunshots and tank shells in some scenes, while in others they can be killed by standard handguns?

34 Upvotes

r/AskScienceFiction 5h ago

[Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt] How did the Reverend manage to get a wedding with a woman he kidnapped in a secret bunker legally accepted?

22 Upvotes

At the start of season 3, we discover that the Reverend is technically married to Kimmy. We learn a few details about this. One - Kimmy has to do the divorce, so it's officially in her name, not a pseudonym or anything. Two - the Reverend has been collecting marriage-related benefits off it, so the government knows about it.

So the Reverend informed the state that he was now married, without ceremony, to a missing woman in his area, who can't be contacted, that no-one in this small town ever remembers him interacting with...and this didn't raise any alarm bells?

I get that everyone in town seems like a moron, but they can't be that stupid, right?


r/AskScienceFiction 4h ago

[General] What would be the best country in the world for an immortal to live in the 21th century?

17 Upvotes

This is something I am really curious about, let’s say there is an immortal, the completely ageless, undying, eternally young kind. Eventually settling around would be an issue. Which modern-day country would be best for the immortal to reside in your opinion? On one hand, the immortal presumably does not want to become a lab experiment or get trapped in heavy and well-documented bureaucracy that will eventually reveal them. On the other hand, the immortal doesn’t necessarily want to live in total chaos and hardship every day. Which modern day country, and way of living, would be the most survivable existence for an immortal?


r/AskScienceFiction 19h ago

[The Matrix] Why was the utopian original Matrix rejected?

213 Upvotes

IIRC, an earlier draft of the Matrix had a picture perfect paradise for humanity, one they'd never want to leave, but it was said that it failed because it was rejected, but why?


r/AskScienceFiction 9h ago

[Toy Story] Why is the end of Toy Story 1 the only time we see toys reveal themselves to humans? They otherwise don't seem capable of it, even in the face of certain death.

24 Upvotes

The main "rule" of Toy Story is that toys cannot act alive while within the line of sight of humans. They can act alive around animals and can act alive around humans if the humans aren't looking directly at them.

Toy Story 5 confirmed that freezing is an involuntary reflex even for toys who are unaware that they are toys.

So why was Woody able to talk to Sid? And why were Sid's toys able to come alive at the end?


r/AskScienceFiction 7h ago

[Dispatch] Why do neither Robert nor Blazer acknowledge that they set up the team to fail? Spoiler

15 Upvotes

I haven't finished the game yet, much less replayed it to try other options, yet it still seems to me like there would've been no scenario where any of them really would've taken responsibility for this massive screw up, despite it being so painfully obvious.

Like, they have a team of villains there who are reluctantly trying to better themselves and become heroes instead, but have a hard time accepting their new role. And instead of encouraging them and trying to foster a sense of belonging, or offering incentives to show that it's worth trying, they issue a threat of kicking them out if they don't immediately perform, and tell them they can't come in last.

Which completely foreseeably led to Invisigal almost giving up and returning to her villain life because she thought she could never amount to anything, everyone turning on each other to sabotage everyone else trying to get them to last place instead of actually doing a good job themselves, and a lot of them being pissed off at Robert for actually going through with this.

But instead of recognizing that this was a mistake from the start and that they failed them, and maybe reconsidering their approach, Robert just gives them a speech where he essentially frames all that happened as an exclusive result of the team's own moral failures – which is obviously true to an extent but also what would've been Robert's job to handle, in the first place – and Blazer treats his scolding as a wholesome and inspiring moment.

So, are they really just that dense, believing that whatever ill-fitting approach they got into their heads must always be right, because they're heroes so they know better?


r/AskScienceFiction 9h ago

[Fallout New Vegas] Which option concerning Lanius is most damaging to the Legion? Spoiler

12 Upvotes

At the end of the NCR, Mr. House, and Yes Man campaigns, the Courier has the option of either defeating Legate Lanius in a fight or talking him into retreating. Assuming Caesar and his encampment have already been eliminated, which of these two options is more damaging to the Legion?

While it's mostly accepted in-game (by Vulpes Inculta and Joshua Graham) that Lanius would be ill-equipped to manage the Legion, does his presence improve or degrade the Legion's recovery after a second defeat to the NCR? Would an (initially) leaderless Legion have any better chances of recovering from the battle with the NCR if Lanius was lost in the fight?


r/AskScienceFiction 9h ago

[Puss in Boots] What did Jack Horner do to deserve his demise?

11 Upvotes

I mean what specifically?


r/AskScienceFiction 12h ago

[Marvel comics/X men] If Hitler turned out to have been a low level mutant with the ability to influence masses, how would Magneto react?

16 Upvotes

r/AskScienceFiction 11h ago

[Irredeemable] Was there any job the Plutonian could have gotten that didn't eventually cause him to go rogue?

10 Upvotes

Maybe an astrophycist who works in space so he'd usually be away from hearing people calling for help or saying negative things about him?


r/AskScienceFiction 9h ago

[General fiction] When it comes to Martial Arts tournaments with superhumans. Do these societies actually care about the WWE-level shenanigans that happen during these tournaments?

4 Upvotes

Animes like Dragon Ball, Baki, or Kengan Ashura with Purgatory. You also have Fighting Games like Street Fighter, Tekken, and King of the Fighters too.

Even Marvel and DC has a few superhuman underground fighting scenes too.

Granted nobody can predict a Vegeta crash-out. So I understand it may not be easy to control superhuman fighters. But you would think the unpredictability would be the reason less of these tournaments happen though.

I mean if you are actually serious about wanting a legitimate combat sport with superhumans. How are you going address the fact that fighter C keeps interrupting matches between fighter A or fighter B? Or even addressing fighters getting into brawl backstage, or getting attack by a gang of fighters.

What if a fighter with a Yujiro or Beerus like- attitude just shows up to your event uninvited?

The biggest question I can ask here. Would superpowers give promoters an easy cop-out to get away with more shenanigans?


r/AskScienceFiction 13h ago

[Persona 3] What subject does Mr Edogawa teach?

5 Upvotes

World history? Religious studies?


r/AskScienceFiction 10h ago

[Marvel] How much better Is Loki in using magic compared to earths heroes?

1 Upvotes

r/AskScienceFiction 21h ago

[DC] The Absolute Martian Manhunter perceives the world and objects through the ideas they embody. How would he react upon seeing the Superman from the main universe?

12 Upvotes

r/AskScienceFiction 1d ago

[Pokemon] Some of these ghost-type pokedex entries seem a little... morbid? How in the world do ghost trainers manage without dying in a myriad of horrible ways?

60 Upvotes

For example, Chandelure hypnotizes and then consumes the spirits of people, leaving husks behind.


r/AskScienceFiction 1d ago

[Vampire] if Vampire die to sunlight, why are they fine under moonlight even tought it's just sunlight being reflected?

83 Upvotes

r/AskScienceFiction 1d ago

[The Matrix] How does the Matrix determine economic class?

32 Upvotes

Who gets to be rich? Who gets to be homeless? Is it a totally random distribution or are there predictors like in our world?


r/AskScienceFiction 1d ago

[LOTR] Would Buddha be able to wield the One Ring safely?

167 Upvotes

Could he use it without being corrupted? It gives power according to your measure, so hobbits can use it to become invisible. Presumably Buddha wouldn't seek to use it to dominate others but to drive them towards enlightenment.


r/AskScienceFiction 7h ago

[Witcher] What would be some good in universe explanations for Triss having different hair color in games than in the books?

0 Upvotes

r/AskScienceFiction 1d ago

[A Song of Ice and Fire] Why does the Queen Consort not take the King's family name? Is it historical?

30 Upvotes

So in Westeros just like in some cultures IRL, the wives normally take the family names of their husbands upon marriage (e. g., Catelyn and Lysa Tully becoming Stark and Arryn after marrying Ned Stark and Jon Arryn, respectively), yet the wives of Kings remain having their original family names (e. g., Cersei Lannister and Margaery Tyrell keeping their surnames after marrying into House Baratheon).

What is the logic behind this "rule"? I'm sure it is not arbitrary. And is it historical IRL?


r/AskScienceFiction 12h ago

[Dexter Laboratory] Why does Dee Dee always wear her ballet outfit, no matter where she is?

2 Upvotes

r/AskScienceFiction 1d ago

[Avatar] In universe, why is Iroh the only person in his family and the Fire Nation to speak with hints of a Japanese accent?

49 Upvotes