Fanon Regulus is an absolute abomination that makes no sense whatsoever. I was honestly shocked because when I was in the fandom during my teenage years, Regulus was portrayed as a sort of Draco but without the bullying and a bit more introverted. The typical rich kid, quite alienated by his parents' classist and segregationist ideals, who was desperate to prove his worth and did so by siding with Voldemort. There was also a lot of angst surrounding the drama between the Black brothers and the complete breakdown of their relationship. And that portrayal made a lot of sense to me because it aligned well with canon.

We know very little about Regulus, but what the books tell us is that he was the golden child of the family, that Walburga always held him up as the example of what a good son should be, that his room was filled with Voldemort posters as if he were his personal Harry Styles, and that he ultimately deserted the Death Eaters because what he thought it would be didn’t match the reality. It’s a story very similar to Draco’s, so it made sense that the fandom drew quite a few parallels between them.

Now, I have no idea what they’ve done with all of that. Well, they’ve thrown it in the trash, that’s for sure, but I don’t even understand why. There’s plenty of interesting material to work with in canon, there’s no need to invent nonsense like him being an abused child (which is absolutely false), or that his family forced him to join the Death Eaters (which is also false—Narcissa never joined, and no one cared; Orion and Walburga weren’t part of Voldemort’s army, and while the Blacks clearly supported Voldemort, they didn’t seem to mind whether their family members actually joined his ranks or not). Or the absurd idea that he was some poor, weepy boy in love with his older brother’s best friend—like, what the actual fuck? If Regulus ever felt anything for James Potter, it was probably disdain or scorn for being a blood traitor, and maybe some rage for seeing him as the main reason Sirius betrayed the family. That ship is absolutely ridiculous.

Now, I’m not going to criticize crack ships in general because there are plenty in different fandoms that I’ve enjoyed. What I do consider an abomination is when people completely change a character’s personality, making them unrecognizable, and then have the audacity to slap a canon name on them. Like, why not just create your own OCs within that world and build the story around them? Why destroy canon characters? Why not write your crack ships while still respecting their canon personalities? It’s entirely possible if you put in the effort. I just find it completely absurd.