The Fantastical and Felicitous Fictional Character Blog Tag

Heyo everyone!

So in case you thought that I started this new blog, preached at you in the very first post, and then promptly abandoned the place — never fear!! I am back, and I am about to make good on my early promise to fill this place with ridiculous fangirling!! XD

Maribeth over at the very lovely Trekking Through Hobbit Holes blog recently participated in the *deep breath* Fantastical and Felicitous Fictional Character Blog Tag created by Emily from The Altogether Unexpected blog. And she tagged me to do it next!! Eeep! I can’t wait to flail ridiculously and leave you all in speechless astonishment about just HOW MUCH I LOVE FAKE PEOPLE!!!

So, ummm… yes there will be a lot of yelling about just how much I really do love fictional characters and their fictional, often almost completely-unrealistic lives. And this will be LONG. If you don’t like reading a lot of nonsense like that, it’s probably best if you skip this post. 😛

Anyway, on to the tag!

rules

– Answer every question honestly. (Duh)

– Use as many GIFs and images as possible.

– Incorporate at least one YouTube Video with a favorite scene of a character

– NO VAGUE ANSWERS ALLOWED!! Explain why you chose that favorite character to fit that description.

– If you can’t choose just one, that’s OK — Give us a few answers and geek out if that’s what it takes!

– Tag at least 3 people.

– Use fictional characters from any fictional story.

– If you get nominated and/or decide to participate in this tag, please put a link back to this post in your post and credit yours truly as the creator.

– Have fun and obsess over fictional characters!!

---

Goody-two-shoes: A character who was just so morally good

Now I’m sure almost everyone who has participated in this tag as at least mentioned Steve Rogers for this question.

And I think I’m going to have to do the same.

Steve is always so good. Sure, he’s made mistakes and done things he regrets. But at the end of the day, his strong morals win out. I’m not saying I always fully agree with all of his decisions, but I do think he’s one of the best examples of a character who’s as close to perfect as possible and yet still interesting and likable. Not everyone loves Steve, but I’ve honestly never met anyone who HATES him. It’s really hard to wish ill on someone who is so committed to his beliefs and does as much as he can to practice what he preaches. Unless you’re Red Skull or Thanos, of course…

I really love how Cap manages to stay so true to his high moral code despite all his friends, teammates, and just the world in general who are doing differently! In spite of it all, he remains kind and gentle, has respect for God and his country, treats everyone with dignity, and doesn’t cave to the pressure that says, “There’s nothing you can do, just sit back and let things run their natural course.”

(Now that I’ve said all that, I should add that I know Cap takes some different paths in some of the more recent comics, and no, I still haven’t seen Endgame! So everything I just wrote here only applies to MCU Steve up to Endgame. Anything past Infinity War I can’t comment on.)

Doesn’t matter what the press says. Doesn’t matter what the politicians or the mobs say. Doesn’t matter if the whole country decides that something wrong is something right.

This nation was founded on one principle above all else: The requirement that we stand up for what we believe, no matter the odds or the consequences. When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world —

‘No, YOU move.’

CAPTAIN America (written by J. Michael Straczynski for Civil War: The Amazing Spiderman comic)

Best meme ever. Don’t @ me.

Heartbreaker: A character who made you cry

I should clarify that when I use the phrase “Made Me Cry”, I mean something more along the lines of “Made Me WANT To Cry,” or “Made Me Extremely Melancholy and Obsessive for Several Days and I Might Have Shed a Few Tears Into My Pillow Under the Cover of Darkness When I Couldn’t Stop Thinking About Them At 2 A.M.”

Because, as a rule, Shay Does Not Cry.

Obviously, I DO cry sometimes, but mainly when I’m mad or… being emotionally compromised because of certain things that plague the female life. To be honest, I’m far more emotional in my writing than I am “in real life”. Maybe that’s how I make up for typically being very levelheaded and non-emotional, by being so over-the-top online?

But there is one character who I did actually *sob* for, and not at the part of their story that most would probably think.

Warning: EXTREME SPOILERS for Andrew Peterson’s Wingfeather Saga begin after this point. You have been warned!

(if you don’t want spoilers for these books, just skip down to the next question)

Anyone who has read The Wingfeather Saga book series by Andrew Peterson knows that Mr. Peterson is an EXCELLENT writer of sibling dynamics.

Janner hiding from a fearsome Toothy Cow.
Source: The Wingfeather Saga website

All throughout the story, oldest brother Janner is faced with conflicts brought on by his job of protecting his young brother and sister, Kalmar and Leeli. Especially in the case of Kal, Janner often feels frustrated that HE is the one seemingly having to deal with all his little brother’s mistakes and failings. Kalmar is destined to rule the fabled Shining Isle as king someday, while all Janner will ever receive is the duty of cleaning up after him.

When I first read The Wingfeather Saga, I related SO MUCH with Janner. It was insane how the things he struggled with, the frustration at feeling responsible for his younger siblings, his struggles to protect them anyway, his conflict with Kalmar when the younger boy repeatedly and blatantly contradicts him and makes dumb, immature decisions that only lead to trouble, mirrored the same things I’ve felt throughout my life as the oldest of four sibs. Those feelings of frustration and the desire to break free, to just have my own space and to leave the tag-a-longs behind… Janner feels it all, and Mr. Peterson writes it beautifully.

Janner as imagined for The Wingfeather Saga short film.
Source: The Wingfeather Saga website

But what actually broke me was the moment when Kalmar was allowed to meet and speak to his Maker face-to-face, while Janner had to stay behind.

I was going through a tough time myself when I first read Wingfeather, feeling rather lost and confused and trying to figure out what God was doing with me. And here I saw a character, so much like myself, an oldest child who struggled to stay true to his duty of protecting and guiding his siblings, a boy who was trying to live up to his calling and serve his Maker… and he was being bluntly denied the opportunity to even speak with that Maker. Instead, this tremendous privilege was being given to his little brother, the one who had messed up SO BADLY, who had repeatedly rebelled against his authorities and his calling, who had contradicted his appointed guide and made immature choices that almost led to him being utterly lost.

Listen, I understand now what a beautiful picture that is of how our Maker loves those who are the most broken, the concept of “the last shall be first”, and all that. But at a time when I was struggling… all I felt was Janner’s pain in being “rejected”. He wasn’t, of course.

It just wasn’t his time yet. And lemme tell you, *that part* did cause me to shed a few tears, too. When Janner Wingfeather, eldest son of the King and Queen of the Shining Isle, fully embraces his destiny as protector and guide, as a savior, and sacrificially gives himself up to save so many of the lost and broken.

not a GIF *of* the character, I know, but we’ve only got like one episode of the TV series yet…

Also I want to use to chance to talk about HOW MUCH I WANT THAT TV SERIES/MOVIE SERIES/WHATEVER TO BE PICKED UP AND GET A FULLY MADE AAAARRRRGHH

Here, let’s watch the trailer again:

Parrot: A character who won’t stop talking

Oh, this one is easy: Me. XD

Being serious again, I think I’ll go with Julio, from Kyle Robert Shultz’s “Wild West”-set fantasy series, Crockett and Crane.

Julio is a dragon, but also a young Quixotan cowboy (he can shift between his natural reptilian form and a more human-looking one). And he doesn’t always speak the Afterversian equivalent of English so well. This makes the “won’t shut up” aspect even more entertaining at times.

However, it’s probably not Julio’s actual talking that his friends have the most trouble with, but his more… musical pursuits. XD

Anyway, Julio is great. He’s pretty much the clown of the Crockett and Crane group, but he’s not to be underestimated — remember the dragon bit? He can pack a lot of destructive power in just a couple puffs of his fiery breath when he takes dragon form. But I also get the distinct feeling that he has a lot of hidden history tucked away from past years of his longer-than-you’d-think life, and it’s probably not as cheerful as Julio himself tends to be…

Devilish: Your favorite villain

Even though there are quite a few “villain” characters who I’ve greatly enjoyed, I’m going with Count Olaf from Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events this time.

Source: The Lemony Snicket Wiki

In the book series, Count Olaf is just downright despicable. He’s nasty, twisted, a little bit insane… and just generally awful. There are moments when his ridiculous plans to dupe the Baudelaires and others out of their fortunes are funny, but he’s still a generally horrible guy. And yet, he never fails to escape justice and run off free, only to reappear in the next chapter with yet another scheme to trap the Baudelairs, hurt their friends, and destroy what remains of the true VFD.

As the story and we gradually learn about the great Schism within VFD and the events surrounding it, you realize he’s gone through a lot that has led him to this place… and then in the last book, he becomes less of a despicable villain and more of a sad, twisted case of greed and revenge taking over the life of a once not-so-bad guy. By the end, you don’t necessarily like Olaf… but you feel a little less hatred towards him. And so do the Baudelaires. It’s best to just let past wrongs lie buried in the sand, and move on, even if you can never forget.

Source: The Lemony Snicket Wiki

In the Netflix show, the story is a little different. I think the main reason for this is Neil Patrick Harris’ amazing performance, but the fact that we also get a bit more exploration of the character and his history is also due some credit. Harris adds a lot of fun to the character; he’s still as twisted, ridiculous, and gross as ever, but small quirks and mannerisms and moments of emotion that are included this time help you really love to hate the Count. He’s even more ridiculous, downright goofy at times, and yet it doesn’t diminish the nastiness. He still won’t think twice about killing former friends, betraying accomplices, and destroying the lives of perfectly innocent children. But… he’s also far more laughable. And, in my opinion, far more sympathetic. (Finally getting to see the events of that infamous “night at the opera” certainly has something to do with this.)

Besides all this, you can’t help but burst into laughter every time he appears onscreen in yet another Very Functional Disguise and going by the alias of Captain Sham…

Detective Dupin…

Mattathias Medicalschool…

or Shirley.

Love Interest: A character who, if alive in reality, you would want to marry

This one really IS hard for me. Because I’m the kinda girl who actually doesn’t give a ton of thought to marriage or romance (um, in regard to myself, I mean… obviously I DO ship my fictional peeps!!)

But… I guess if I had to pick someone, I would probably go with Ezra Bridger from Star Wars: Rebels.

The biggest thing about Ezra is his heart. Even though he tries never to acknowledge it at first, Ezra is an extremely sensitive and caring individual. He is blessed with an extremely strong connection to the Living Force, the power and life-energy of all living beings. He can connect almost effortlessly with wildlife, both on his homeplanet and on the various other worlds the team visits during their campaigns.

Whenever Ezra goes, he tries to help people. He once told Yoda that reason he wanted to fight with the Rebellion and become a Jedi was because of the way the Rebels made people feel: Alive.

Ezra always exhibits tremendous compassion, whether it be to an alien baby needing to be hidden from Imperial agents, the people of his homeworld, or even a lost former-Sith marooned on a planet reeking of the Dark Side… no matter what the appearances may be, Ezra always tries to think the best of everyone. His trusting nature does cause him to be susceptible to less-scrupulous schemers and his faith in goodness is tested. But in the end, he still stands up for the Rebel cause and sacrificially gives everything to protect his friends, his family, and his home.

All that compassion, the kindness and empathy, and the quiet strength that he had grown into by the end of the show, added to the fact that he’d be a generally great person to hang out with, given his goofy, dorky since of humor, would make him someone I could definitely consider pursuing a relationship with. XD

I need him to come baaaaack… *cries*

Sidekick: A character who was always loyal no matter what

This is going to seem so predictable, but who else could I possibly choose for this category but hobbit gardener extraordinaire, Samwise Gamgee??

Now I am not one of those people who glorify Sam while tearing down Frodo. That’s just plain wrong, in my opinion. I believe that the two only were able to achieve their quest because of the support they gave each other.

But what makes Sam so great on his own?

Well, I would say it’s his faithfulness. Even in the face of everything the darkness can throw at him, he stays loyal to Frodo and their quest. He faces hunger, sleepless nights, and physical physical exertion during his mission and never wavers.

When we first moved to this area a few years ago, it took me forever to meet new people and make friends. It was incredibly lonely, and I longed just to have someone who I could talk to, to share my dreams and fangirl with. To pray with me. To text when my thoughts wouldn’t let me sleep and just be assured that someone cared. I can’t tell you how many nights I buried my head in my pillow and whispered, “Dear Lord, why can’t I just find a friend like Sam Gamgee??” Since then, I’ve met some great people and forged some amazing friendships that I know will last for years, even though some of us have never met in “real life”. But I still think being said to be a friend like Sam is one of the greatest compliments one could ever give or be given. 🙂

Complicated: A character you love and hate

I’ve been able to resist yelling about Doctor Who so far… but that time is now over!! Because I don’t really know of another character who could fit this description as well as the Doctor’s oldest… friend? Enemy? …Frenemy?? He’s manipulative, evil, twisted, sadistic, absolutely hilarious, and sometimes you just can’t help but root for… her?

Because yes, my favorite version of the Master so far is a woman who runs around in ridiculously dramatic makeup and a usually very-out-of-place Victorian dress (and often a hat to match). She’s terrible and I just love her.

(For those who may not be as familiar with Doctor Who lore, the Master is from the same race as the Doctor, known as the “Time Lords”. When their body wears out or becomes damaged to the point of death, they have the ability to “regenerate”, every cell replicating itself until their entire body is rebuilt, though often completely different in appearance. All previous memories remain, as the new incarnation is still the same individual, but now housed in a new body and often with new mannerisms, personality quirks, and age. This sometimes even includes a switch of genders, as in the case of Missy and the Thirteenth Doctor.)

Missy is a classic example of loving a character but disliking the things they do. There’s really no way to justify most of her schemes, they’re just plain wrong. But she’s so entertaining it’s hard not to grin when she comes onscreen. And you can’t help but root for her when you catch a glimpse of something genuine (the need for friendship, maybe even a desire to be… good?) beneath the flippant, carefree “Queen of Evil” persona. This is especially true throughout DW series 10, where the Twelfth Doctor is attempting to teach Missy goodness by her own request, and reaches its culmination in the finale, “World Enough and Time/The Doctor Falls”.

Ughhh this episode… I’m still not over it and I watched it months ago…*cries*

Oddity: A character who was strange, but you loved them that way

This one took some time to finally decide on. I considered several different characters, including Migmar from Wayne Thomas Batson and Christopher Hopper’s The Berinfell Prophecies series. And even though I still love that flatulent barrister gnome (yes, you read that right), I decided to ultimately pick another on-screen character in order to have some visual material to go along with the writing. Book characters are FANTASTIC, and not having illustrations will never be something to turn me away from a good read, but it does make things difficult in the images/GIFs department when you’re blogging.

So, since I just finished ranting about Missy for the Love/Hate category, it only makes sense that I include another Time Lady in this one. No, not Romana or River Song (although I do love the both of them and will definitely talk about them here eventually!!)

I’m talking about the other one.

The one who can occasionally be glimpsed shoveling dirt into her mouth,

Who dresses like a three-year-old,

And insists on scrunching her face into what should be the ugliest expressions ever and yet instead manages to remain consistently adorable.

The one who flies around in a time-and-spaceship that looks like a blue phone booth outside and is bigger on the inside.

Yep, I’m talking ’bout the Thirteenth Doctor.

A few reasons I love her: she’s incredibly kind to people. She does everything in her power to avoid violence (and while some consider this to be evidence of the current writers being “too PC”, I think it’s rather nice in a modern sci-fi that could just as easily be full of gore). She’s absolutely bursting with energy and curiosity. She loves learning new things, meeting new people, and having new experiences. She’s very gentle and unassuming, making her one of the most easy-to-approach Doctors so far.

Besides all that, she’s adorable and Jodie Whittaker’s portrayal of her quickly made me love the character. Even though some fans worry about the quality of the most recent series, no matter what happens, I have to thank this current era for bringing me into the Whovian fold. 😀

Queen: A female character who you admire and aspire to emulatE

My pick for this one is a literal queen: Queen and later Senator Padme Amidala.

I’ve always admired the way George Lucas and his team throughout the prequels and later The Clone Wars series chose to portray Padme: she’s a politician, a ruler, someone with power and prestige, yet she’s humble, kind, and manages to remain morally upright amid the cesspool of corruption the Galactic Republic is swiftly turning into. She’s also not afraid in the slightest to get her hands dirty when the need arises, even if it breaks protocol. She’s a lady, but she’s also a fighter. She believes in goodness and being involved, not sitting back and thanking the stars for the fact that the hard times haven’t reached you yet.

I guess the thing that mainly sums Padme up, and the thing I most love about her and want to emulate, is that she’s a feminine warrior. Strong, resolute, good with weapons, but also a thinker, kind, in tune with her heart, and one who would always rather negotiate than run in with blaster blazing.

Sadly, we never got to see Padme as a mother or more mature woman, but her influence over her daughter, Leia, is clear: just like her mother, Leia is a fighter, and she’s never backed down even as the galaxy has been terrorized by those who should be standing at her side in the fight against darkness, first in the form of Darth Vader (her father) and now returning as Kylo Ren (her son).

I absolutely love that it’s canon that Leia has and treasures Padme’s wardrobe.

Savior: A character who oddly reminds you of Christ

This category made me think. I wanted to make sure that I payed attention to the “oddly” in the definition, because as I’ve grown and matured (both in my faith and in general), I’ve been fascinated at all the places I’ve found echoes of Christ, places where I never would’ve thought or expected to see him. Something that never fails to capture my attention and hold it fast is discovering a new “splintered fragment of the true light” in our myths and stories. I didn’t want to say Aslan or Gandalf or Aragorn, and I’ve already mentioned the Doctor and Ezra Bridger for other categories.

While mulling over this question, I turned to my sister to see if she could offer any ideas. Her quick response: “What about Eleven??”

Cutey 🙂

Now to be clear, Netflix’s Stranger Things has a LOT of problems. It gets rather dark at moments, and I especially don’t care for the emphasis placed on “romance” between teenagers and even much younger characters. (My family watches it through the filter service VidAngel due to sexual content and the increasing amount of language.)

But one thing I noticed after first watching it is that there is an awful lot of Christ-like imagery and symbolism surrounding the young psychic girl who causes such an uproar in the small town of Hawkins.

El’s most explicitly Christ-like moment is in the finale of the first season, when she banishes the demogorgon to protect both her friends and all the people of Hawkins. In doing this, she traps both herself and the creature in the Upside-Down for a while, while Mike and the boys have no idea where she’s disappeared to. For all they and everyone else know, she’s dead and gone forever. (Her time in the Upside-Down after banishing the demogorgon also bears some similarity to the belief that Christ spent the time between his death and resurrection in Hell.) But then when Mike catches glimpses of her in the aftermath of that battle, he believes she’s returned. Even when he never manages to locate her, when she never openly responds to his messages, he stays strong. He believes that she’s still out there, she’s watching over them, and most of all, she will return.

And when she does, it’s triumphant, it’s powerful, and everyone knows it. She marches in and she’s here to stay. She’s going to live in the open as Hopper’s daughter, no more hiding in that cabin in the woods, and the demogorgons, demodogs, and shadow monsters better watch out. Just like how the faithful, from the apostles all the way to the Christians living now, look forward in hope for the day when Christ will return to reign side-by-side with his Father forevermore.

Couldn’t find a GIF of THAT scene, but here’s another of El’s triumphant comin’-to-fight-the-baddies entrances for you!

---

Wow, this has taken me so long to finally get put together and published for you guys!! But it was tons of fun, too; I hope ya’ll enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

I’m going to tag…

• Amelie at Sword Maiden of the King
• Josiah at Not the Link You Are Looking For
• Kitten at A Creative Type
• Christine at Overflowing Mind and Pen
• S. M. Metzler at Tea With Tumnus

Here are the prompts one more time, “should you choose to take this challenge” and all that. XD

1. Goody-two-shoes: A character who was just so morally good
2. Heartbreaker: A character who made you cry
3. Parrot: A character who won’t stop talking
4. Devilish: Your favorite villain
5. Love interest: A character who, if alive in reality, you would want to marry
6. Sidekick: A character who was always loyal no matter what
7. Complicated: A character you love and hate
8. Oddity: A character who was strange, but you loved them that way
9. Queen/King: A female/male character who you admire and aspire to emulate
10. Savior: A character who oddly reminds you of Christ

I hope you all have a wonderful week, and hopefully I’ll be back with more words to share very soon!! 🙂