Darcy Lewis

Darcy Lewis is a character in the films Thor and Thor: The Dark World. Although she was a minor character in the films, the fandom for Darcy is quite large.
==Canon==
Darcy is introduced as the assistant to astrophysicist Dr. Jane Foster, and by association Erik Selvig when he joins them in New Mexico prior to the opening of the film. She is the one to taze Human!Thor after he arrived on Earth. She's a political science grad student that only got hired by Jane because she was the only applicant. When Jane's notes and research was taken by S.H.I.E.L.D., she was shown to be more concerned about her iPod. She demonstrates some hacking ability in Thor and in the second Marvel Comics prelude to Thor: The Dark World.
==Fandom==
Darcy's role in the movie was relatively small, but she impressed fandom with her tazering of human!Thor. Partly because of this Darcy has been happily claimed by fandom as the best Mary Sue ever. Some fans suggest that Darcy's characterization has been influenced by actress Kat Dennings' role on the CBS sitcom 2 Broke Girls. Much to the appreciation of the Darcy fandom, Darcy gains a lot more screen time in the second film. Lack of Darcy in Thor: Ragnarok disappointed a lot of Darcy fans. When it was revealed that Jane Foster will be in Thor 4: Love and Thunder at D23,Thor 4: Love and Thunder: Natalie Portman is Mighty Thor, D23 details, release date and more. Cnet. August 25, 2019. fans were hoping that it would mean Darcy would be back as well. Kat Dennings, however, had confirmed that she was not approached about it at the time of the announcement, although if she had been, she could not reveal it.Thor 4: Is Jane Foster’s pal Darcy RETURNING for Love And Thunder? Kat Dennings speaks Newslanes. July 27, 2019. It was only later revealed that she would co-star in the WandaVision web series.Kat Dennings, Randall Park, and Kathryn Hahn join Disney+’s WandaVision. EW.com. August 23, 2019.
Darcy Lewis fans have also been known to cosplay her, especially for the Thor 2 premiere,FyeahDarcyLewis tag "cosplay" usually partnered up with a Jane Foster.
===Common Tropes & Themes===
The main Darcy-related tropes involve her love of tazers, her iPod, her snarky attitude, and her amazing body.Unexpected things for fandom to fetish... (Accessed Aug. 6, 2012)
* Although Darcy doesn't appear in the Avengers 2012 movie, fanon has her living the Avengers Tower and/or working for S.H.I.E.L.D.:
** Being the science wrangler/lab assistant for not just Jane Foster, but also to Bruce Banner and Tony Stark.
** Being Phil Coulson's latest agent prodigy.
** Avengers PR
** Pepper Potts' assistant.
* Everyone Is Related trope is also popular for her as she is often shown to be a daughter (or niece/granddaughter/sibling/etc. of one of the Avengers characters.
** The most common example of this: Tony Stark is revealed to be her father, commonly tagged as Darcy Lewis is Tony Stark's Daughter
*** Something a little rarer for Darcy, but it has appeared; Darcy becomes Maria Stark, thus is Tony's mother and married to Howard Stark.
** She's also been related to Howard Stark, Phil Coulson, Betty Ross, Peggy Carter & Sharon Carter, Nick Fury (as his stepdaughter or adopted daughter) and Maria Hill.
** Several stories portray her as Hel, Loki's daughter and queen of the Asgardian underworld, taking time off in disguise on Earth, tagged as Hel Darcy Lewis.
* Darcy can be referred to as the Little Black Dress for the MCU since she has been paired up with all the characters in MCU (and in various crossovers).SHIP DARCY WITH ALL THE THINGS tag on AO3 Due to everyone shipping her with everyone or at least multiple characters, "Darcyland" is a popular phrase used to refer to Darcy shipping fans.
* Darcy is often portrayed as Jewish; this is mainly due to Kat Dennings being Jewish.
* Darcy is frequently shown in Bakery AUs/Coffee Shop AUs or in other situations where she is an amazing cook or baker. This is inspired by Kat Denning's role as Max Black in 2 Broke Girls who can bake amazing cupcakes.
** She's usually the character that starts an Avengers family dinner night tradition.
* Bros with Jane Foster, Thor, Erik Selvig, Jarvis, Natasha Romanoff, Clint Barton, Bruce Banner and/or Hulk, Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, Johnny Storm, Sue Storm, Pepper Potts, Tony Stark, and with the release of Cap2 - Sam Wilson and the release of Avengers 2 - Wanda and Pietro Maximoff. Plus various characters in crossover works.
* In same-actor crossovers, Darcy is often disguised as Max Black (put through witness-protection by Shield) or related by blood (example: twin or cousin).
* Soulmates/Soulmarks AUs is very popular trope in the Darcyland - Darcy is paired up with any and all Marvel Characters and various crossover characters. Often appears as one story but with multiple chapters with one or more pairings of Darcy's.
* Superhero!Darcy - Darcy is often a supernatural creature (for example, Darcy as a jinn) or mutant. If she's a mutant, it often brings the X-Men in the story.
* She's often depicted as writing and reading fanfic, often Avengers RPF, and as trying to prevent Thor and Steve Rogers from seeing this fanfic.
===Darcy as a Mary Sue===
Darcy is frequently accused of being a Mary Sue/self-insert. One nonnie on Fail Fandom Anon addresses this issue:
:I think a fair amount of Darcy's popularity comes from the opportunities to write absolutely classic chicklit with her. You blinded me with political science is a great example: You get young, snarky, ambitious female character in the big city for the first time, learning to deal with hot men, getting access to awesome female role models, exploring a bit about how the Avengers fit into the world with normal people in it, and just coming of age. I mean, you get a lot of straight romance with her, but most of what I see really is much more about Darcy growing as a person than hooking her up with people.
:And I love that! I've never actually seen coming of age stories written for female characters in this volume in fandom before. Hermione probably has as many, but the fics for her were much more likely to be focused on romance. She actually reminds me most, fandom-wise, of Draco: Fairly minor character who got extremely popular only partially because it seemed like he was going to be a much more major character than he was. Most of his appeal came from the ability to be snarky and the fact that he provided a window into a world that canon didn't explore with the whole old pureblood family thing.
:I think a thing with that kind of character that most the people who hate their inexplicable popularity miss is the ability to explore the world that canon is set in from an angle the heroes can't. It's kind of a different mindset? Most fanfic is about exploring the main characters and their relationships. That kind of character tends to be looser about the character itself, but it on average explores the world that canon provides in much more depth than the stuff focused on the major characters, and that is a vastly underutilized resource in fanfic imo. I love worldbuilding, and it's hard to find good fic dealing with that.
:And honestly, I am really irritated by the self-insert accusation. Not really because I think it's entirely wrong, but because I've never once seen a male character written in a similar self-inserty manner get that accusation. I've seen Clint's characterization criticized for everything under the sun but being a self-insert, and I think he is absolutely at least as much a self-insert as Darcy, and on average much more poorly written to boot. Sometimes she's a self-insert, great. So's Clint, so's Tony, so Harry Potter, so's Draco Malfoy, so's Neville, so's more characters than I can count. People self-insert across genderlines, universe, and I am really sick of the underlying assumption that only self-inserts of the same gender somehow count.Things You Would Not Admit Unanon (Accessed Sept. 24, 2012)
The very traits people find appealing about Darcy can lead to her being written OOC, as one commenter on Fanficrants explains:
:I've also seen her written as a very ditzy, patronizing caricature of a teenager, instead of a college-aged woman who is interning with a scientist and managing to do a good job despite it not being in her field. I've seen her reduced to her cup-size (which as a very busty woman, offends me on a personal level), and just....
:Fandom treats her as if using Facebook means she's vapid and has no interests behind the surface or Internet memes. The woman is a political scientist, for god's sake, but good luck fandom remembering it.Comment by ashen_key in the post . Thread started November 14, 2012. Last accessed Nov. 14, 2012.
On the other hand, the only thing that really is written differently and might be OOC is Darcy's sexuality - since we can assume she’s a wise-cracking, tech-savvy chick, but we were not given much toward sexuality:
:I think the only thing I’m not entirely sure about that has us all split is how comfortable she is with her sexuality. For one, I don’t think she’s as much of a “bad girl” as some fics lead on, but to each their own. I mean, take the CPR comment into consideration, and then that deleted scene with Fandral where she “enjoys the attention” … I think she’s semi comfortable with it and I doubt she’d jump into bed with anyone immediately like some write her, but that’s just me.
:Overall, a lot of it is taking what we’re giving and building on it. We’re not entirely projecting ourselves onto her, or we’re not taking her and starting from scratch like we’re accused of. We have enough material that we do, in fact, have a lot to work with. Most people who question [it] just haven’t seen it that way.Comment by Watson_a_time in the post 
===Shipping===
Darcy is featured in a variety of both het and femslash pairings. All of them are fanon, due to the fact that in the first movie there is no knowledge that Darcy is in a relationship with anyone. She shows harmless attraction to Thor Odinson with Jane Foster in the first film, and in background/deleted scenes with Fandral. In the second Thor film, she gains an intern/love interest, Ian Boothby.
=== List of Darcy Ships ===
:See more examples in Darcyland article.
Het
* Darcy/Bruce Banner
* Darcy/Bucky Barnes
* Darcy/Clint Barton
* Darcy/Fandral
* Darcy/Ian
* Darcy/Loki
* Darcy/Phil Coulson
* Darcy/Steve Rogers
* Darcy/Thor
* Darcy/Tony Stark
* Darcy/Steve Rogers/Bucky Barnes
Femslash
* Darcy/Jane Foster
* Darcy/Natasha Romanoff
* Darcy/Pepper Potts
* Darcy/Sif
* Darcy/Carol Danvers
Various crossover pairings feature Darcy as well, the most common would be with Johnny "Human Torch" Storm of the Fantastic Four Films, which is usually associated with the Darcy/Steve pairing due to the fact that Johnny resembles Steve (Chris Evans plays both characters which is the main reasoning for resemblance).
==Fanworks==
:See Darcyland for a list of Darcy pairings that have shipping fanworks.
=== Fanfic ===
* Captivated by leftennant. When a failed experiment accidentally drops Darcy Lewis into the middle of Asgard, she finds herself an unwilling guest of the God of Mischief. However, as the two of them are forced to spend time together in each other's company, she begins to wonder if being his prisoner may not be so bad after all. (Of course that might just be her ladyparts talking) (Darcy/Loki)
* Manic Taser Dream Girl by AnnieMar. Upon Darcy's return to the U.S. after encountering evil space-elves in London, and after her recent break-up with Ian, she receives her first mission as an official S.H.I.E.L.D. agent ... teaching a god how to blend in better (absolutely no horns), or he might find himself in very big trouble. (Darcy/Loki)
* The White Hart by Sigridhr. Darcy gets invited along to Álfheim by Thor and Jane. After some drinking and Elvish merry making, she runs into an unexpected acquaintance. But when what was meant to be a bizarre-elvish-harvest-tradition induced one night stand turns into a series of increasingly awkward mistakes, Darcy finds Loki is fitting into her life in a much bigger way than she ever intended. More affectionately known as: Darcy Does the Nine Realms (Darcy/Loki)
* Blueberry by amidtheflowers. 'The time has come for Loki to accept his Jotun form, and Darcy has an idea on how to go about it. (Darcy/Loki)
* The Importance of Pop Culture Awareness by BionicallyIronic. One of the many reasons to be up-to-date on pop culture is so you can know when someone is making fun of you. Or flirting with you. (Darcy/Bucky)
* your will is not your own by Merideath. Agent Lewis is sent to collect Captain Rogers from the wilds of Alaska. A snowstorm is brewing and Darcy's ride abandons them to the elements... or a tiny log cabin. She's pretty sure she watched that movie. It didn't end well. (Darcy/Steve)
* A Morbid Taste for Ice by Sitehound. Darcy Lewis likes to think of herself as terribly adaptable, with an "if life gives you lemons, zap life with a Taser and demand chocolate" sort of attitude. And life, lately, has had a perverse sense of humor, first trapping her in a state of perpetual Science Assistant in the armpit of New Mexico known as Puente Antiguo; and then forcing her to live in a trailer home with Jane Foster, Jane's guy, Thor, and his brother, Loki, master of mischief and wide-scale urban renewal. (Darcy/Loki)
* Prompt Reply by twistedingenue, Darcy and Betty Ross are cousins, and finally meet again.
* Sisters of the Apocalypse by Caiti, Four sisters have been separated for time untold. They have been reunited......and the world should tremble. (Darcy Lewis, Betty Ross, Natasha Romanoff, and Pepper Potts)
* Internship by Salmon_Pink, MCU/Amazing Spider-Man, Rated Mature Darcy needs a new intern, and she's determined to keep things professional this time. Thanks to Gwen, it doesn't quite work out how she planned. (Darcy/Gwen)
* The Yggdrasil Chronicles by smac89. In which Darcy plays a much larger role in the universe than she ever expected, things with Loki are never what they seem, and Darcy finds out she has sisters. Eight of them. And they are goddesses. Of course. (Darcy/Loki)
* sushi pajamas (and other weapons of mass destruction) by sevenfoxes, rated Teen, Seven times the Avengers' weapons have liked Darcy better (and one time the Avenger liked her even more). Because who the hell wouldn't? (Teamfic, eventually Darcy/Steve)
* I'm Gonna Be A Part Of It (Whether I Want To Or Not) by fringedweller, primarily a Darcy gets her life together, with Bruce Banner/Darcy Lewis pairing
* Five times everything was shiny and one time it wasn't by Jadzia_Bear, Firefly crossover, So what if his new cook is guileless and resilient and quick-witted and kind. If there’s one thing Malcolm Reynolds knows how to do, it’s keep his hands off a compelling and beautiful brunette. (Darcy/Mal Reynolds)
* write love on my skin by amusewithaview, various Darcy Soulmates AU pairings
* The Queen of Helheim and the Secret Agent by TardisIsTheOnlyWayToTravel, In which Darcy Lewis is actually Hel Lokisdottir, Queen of Helheim, and Phil Coulson is the badass secret agent we all know and love. (Darcy/Coulson - series now deleted, link via webarchive.org)
* She Blinded Me With Political Science by thingswithteeth, Darcy watched the Avengers defend New York from over two thousand miles away. She could look out her window if she wanted to watch the aftermath. She watches the news instead, and realizes one very important thing: the Avengers have a bit of a PR problem. (Darcy/Bruce)
* Compound Word Situation by CatrinaSL, Darcy is a girl, and she's Scott's friend, but it's definitely not a compound situation. Not at all. (Darcy/Scott Lang)
* 2 Broke Starks by iamgoku and Whedonista93 Darcy Lewis and Max Black lead very different, but far from ordinary lives.Darcy spends her days wrangling scientists and college degrees. Max spends her days running a cupcake business. Both juggle all of that with the chaos of being Tony Stark's daughters. (Darcy Lewis is Tony Stark's Daughter)
* Darcy Lewis vs. the Multi-Verse by aForgottenWeasley (2016) rated Teen, Darcy Lewis takes on the world! (Or you know, the one where fandoms collide and Darcy is present, and/or secretly related to someone else from another fandom). The ultra-mega-crossover which crosses Darcy over with: Captain America The Walking Dead, Blindspot, The Vampire Diaries, Charmed, Supernatural, Teen Wolf, Daredevil, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Jurassic World, Harry Potter, Lucifer, The Originals, Supergirl, Practical Magic, The 100, Twilight, Fast and the Furious Series, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Sleepy Hollow, Hitman: Agent 47, Underworld.
=== Fanart ===
* Darcy and her Ipod, artwork by Marla Rose.
* Darcy from Thor 2 art
* Avengers HS AU girls, a fanart of Darcy, Jane, and Natasha in a High School AU
* Thor: Darcy by annARTism
* Darcy and Idris (from the dragon verse by Merideath) by Vylla
* Darcy Lewis by Vylla
=== Fanvids ===
* The Taser Queen by EternalLoveDreamer, a humor vid.
* Not My Name by Trille Always
* So Easy to Fall For by SweetestGale, Darcy/Everyone
* Girl on Fire by TheLastGhostGirl
* My Skin by Phenomenon175, an AU Darcy has cancer (Darcy/Wade, Darcy & Clint, Darcy/Logan)
* Super Critical by Yve. C
=== Meta/Further Reading ===
* Thor: The Dark World Prelude #2 proves fanon of Darcy Lewis became closer to canon
* Unwinnable Monthly #109: The Unsinkable Darcy Lewis By Amanda Hudgins (December 7, 2018)
* Why ‘Thor’ character Darcy Lewis has an enduring place in Marvel fandom by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw (August 26, 2019) – "She was the first truly relatable female character in the MCU, and that had a lasting impact."
==Archives and Communities==
* Works tagged with Darcy Lewis on Archive Of Our Own
* Tazer Shock, a Darcy fanfic archive.
LiveJournal Communities:
* Going on Facebook, a Darcy Lewis Fic Exchange
==Fannish Links==
* FuckYeahDarcyLewis on tumblr
* Darcyland at Polyvore
* FuckYeahWinterShock
* FuckYeahLokiDarcy
* shieldshockfanfic
==Resources==
* Tazer Shock, a Darcy fansite and fanfic archive.
* Thor characters on TV Tropes.
== References ==
==Navigation==
Category:Marvel Characters Category:Thor Characters Category:WandaVision Characters