Plus a bit where a kid found a big pod in the forest, got really excited, brought it back to the village, and rolled it down a hill against another kid's pod while shouting "Now this is pod racing!"

One player gave me two middle fingers for that. I regret nothing.

Four hours wasted on a side story just to deliver a terrible joke is how you win D&D.

I had a character where I basically stole the backstory from the main character from a children's anime (which the DM recognized) and a name stolen from the D&D player's handbook not fitting the character's race. ... And I forgot characterization and played the character pretty much how I would react--just making enough mental note of my character's backstory (orphan background etc) to avoid plot holes.

Near the end of the campaign, only the DM remembered my character's backstory enough to surprise the entire table (including me) when he unleashed an entire arc unearthing the character's actual parentage. My character's a half-elf, the other half not being human, but a dwarf. This was sometime after the Hobbit movies, but I wasn't even thinking of that--the DM did, however.

Me and the DM has added enough shit on top of the character that the end result is something unique to the campaign.

It wasn't just my character though. Even the most anime-inspired character in the group ended up with a characterization that was truly unique. Adding enough shenanigans on top of even the most boiler-plate character makes the difference, I suppose.

I fucking loved the genetically engineered humans. such wacky guys, and amazing when Bashir starts as the straight-man only to quickly succumb to their unhinged schemes and megalomania. peak Trek.