EG: Re-uploading Naruto with no changes made to his design or history...
❌ +1 to banning; if you want to RP with Naruto that's cool IMO, even on here, but you could just link to the wiki page or something like that instead of uploading a profile here on a site made for OC uploading! Seems like it already goes against the existing TOS to just upload screenshots and official art, etc. I'm guessing people mostly do it to be able to post IC if they RP on the forums + being able to form links with their FCs so I can understand the appeal of uploading them, but... explicitly not an OC.
The derivative characters section I feel has a lot lumped in together so I'll hit them one by one, but if they all Have to be lumped in together then I'd vote no ban because there's too much gray area and too many things part of that I feel shouldn't be banned.
Explicit redesigns (eg. Naruto as a dog or furry)
❌ Soft +1 to banning; if we're again talking about them essentially being the same exact character in name, personality, abilities, and history, it's a fun AU of a canon character and that's valid, always glad to see people having fun with stuff they like!! But I don't feel like that's quite an FC and therefore something to be uploaded here. Again I see the struggle with posting IC and RPing and stuff, but it just feels too borderline. I won't lose any sleep at night if they're not banned, but given Toyhouse's purpose it's probably something that shouldn't be allowed. If it's like a really thorough AU of a character to the point where they're practically the user's creation, no official artwork is uploaded, and the setting/character is properly credited then I wouldn't personally mind seeing them uploaded. I can still see the arguments against having them around, but... IDK it's rough because as some other people have said I don't want to stifle's people's stuff, there can still be a lot of gray area, some things might be a coincidence, etc.
So I guess to sum up if literally Everything is the same about Naruto except he's a dog that should probably be not allowed, but if it's a dog that just seems Inspired by Naruto but has plenty of differences then I don't really know that that should be a hard ban. Should definitely be against the rules to sell/trade them at least, though, since I've seen that concern come up in here!
Characters that're described as an OC or sona but...
➖ No vote; man that one feels kind of hard, like if it's clearly to skirt around the rules of not being allowed to upload a canon character then I'd say sure to banning, but that doesn't seem like the easiest thing to judge. But just an OC who's a nerd who likes cosplaying a certain character all the time or an OC that's clearly inspired by a character but has a lot of design and other differences... I can see the arguments for it but I can also think of plenty of theoretical situations where a ban would be too harsh, so I'll just abstain, leaning more on the no ban side of things unless again it's pretty much an explicit excuse to upload an unchanged canon character.
Personalised playable MCs...
✔️ No ban; I can see arguments here as well, but so long as there's Actually personalization of the character (like the design is considerably different from the "canon" design) and they don't directly follow every plot beat, etc., I think it's a bit different than Naruto as a dog, etc. They're essentially self-inserts, and self-inserts are valid IMO!! In games they're typically explicitly made as blank as possible to be a vessel for the player's ideas, so there's a lot of potential to really make them your own thing - that's pretty much the whole point of them existing! So as long as they're actually given that investment and development into a proper FC and aren't just "literally the 'canon' design of the MU with no difference in personality and backstory than what the game provides" I think they're cool to have around!
Personalised pet site/game characters...
✔️ No ban; as long as the site TOS allows for it and you're not uploading art from the site (unless, again, the site allows for it and credit is being properly given) I don't see any issue with it. They're completely blank slates you're free to customize and make personalities, backstories, and all sorts of creative stuff around! No different from making any other FC, really; they're definitely Your character!
Characters belonging to a canon species/setting...
✔️ No ban; putting these together because I feel the same about both! You're designing the character, making their personality, coming up with their backstory, thinking of adventures for them to go on, defining their abilities, considering their relationships with created characters and canon ones alike... FCs can easily have just as much thought put into them as a standard OC, and being inspired by a canon setting or a canon species shouldn't automatically mean that character isn't original in any way whatsoever. As long as screenshots from games (if applicable) are properly credited, the species/setting is properly credited, and the creator of the species/setting doesn't have some sort of rule against derivative content, I really don't see any issue with FCs being on TH since they're perfectly capable of being fully fleshed-out characters. Not to mention seeing people be so thoroughly inspired by things they love is really awesome!!!