AO3dle Data Notes: Characters, Pairings, Tags, and Work Counts
A data model note covering characters, pairings, tags, count snapshots, and image fallback behavior.
Visual anchor
Izuku Midoriya
My Hero Academia
Tactical summary
Separate entity types
Count snapshots matter
Fallback images protect layout
Counts are represented as game data and can be refreshed as the data pipeline improves. That keeps gameplay stable while the upstream AO3 source continues to move.
Characters, pairings, tags, and franchise entries should not be interpreted the same way. Broad tags can collect work from many fandoms, while character names depend on one fandom's activity.
Image rendering is routed through a guarded proxy with a visible fallback, so a broken source no longer leaves empty UI. That matters on content pages because images carry much of the first impression.