#I love killing main characters

[escapedaudios]

How much would it take you to kill off a listener?

I did it for free already in 2022.

And again in 2023 (though this is a softer death because Slashers can resurect as ghouls)

I will be killing a Listener again very soon.

[bonefall]

Hey, what makes a character a 'plot device but not a character'? And how do you not do that? I'm trying to do it on purpose but also I need to still make them interesting because it's on purpose, yknow?

A good skill to pick up is to learn to criticise criticism itself. A "plot device" is simply a thing that moves the plot along, it's a neutral literary analysis term! Usually, when people are angry that "a character has been used as a plot device," it doesn't mean they hate plot devices. It means they're gesturing at something deeper.

Runningwind and Bumble are equally plot devices in their deaths. They are both killed by the antagonist to escalate political tension. Runningwind is rarely "accused" of just being a plot device, and yet, we're talking about Bumble for the same thing.

So, why?

Well, Runningwind is just a background character, but in life, he was a part of the community. He was characterized as impatient but responsible. Yet, he wasn't SO important that he died with a bunch of unresolved plot threads.

He is mostly an extension of the entity of ThunderClan. His killing by Tigerstar, and the fear and paranoia that settles on the group after this, feel like a progression of the story insteas of something forced.

Bumble, on the other hand...

Is hated immediately by Gray Wing, when she's established as Turtle Tail's friend. Bumble's abuse at Tom the Wifebeater's hands invites even MORE investment. The rejection is shocking and upsetting. There's a story there about our main characters being imperfect; jealous, bigoted, and judgemental.

But, she is simply killed off. Everything they set up for this character is gone with little personalized fanfare. It's not a tragedy with a lesson about cruelty, or something anyone regrets.

It's just... plot. Gray Wing whinging that no one will like his shitty brother now that his body count is 2.

More than that, in the discussion of women in particular, "Fridging" was coined to give a name to the way women characters often don't get their stories told at all. There is a CULTURAL trend of female characters facing disproportionate violence, for the sake of advancing male plots.

Bumble has a lot going for her. Petal had a lot going for her. Turtle Tail had a lot going for her. Bright Stream had a lot going for her. When they died, they took their potential with them.

It's not always wrong to kill off a character of high potential, mind you. In Gurren Lagann, Kamina's death is sudden and shocking, leaving a massive hole in the hearts of the cast that never heals. Grappling with that loss, but also letting his memory fuel them, is a major theme of that story.

All that to say... there's no formula for avoiding it. You've gotta identify what the deeper issue is, in your specific narrative.

I can't say for certain what that will look like for your story, but here's some things I keep in mind;

When you make characters who exist to die, make sure they're people before you axe them.

Ask yourself; what about them does the cast miss?

If they just miss them because they were (pre-existing relationship), go back to the drawing board.

Fluttering Bird as an example. Who was she? Dead sister. Why do they miss her? Dead sister. No traits until after her death.

Runningwind was short-tempered and helpful. Kamina was a valuable leader who made people believe in a brighter future. Swiftpaw was fiesty and desperate to prove himself. The better characterized, the more profound the loss usually is.

If this is a female character who is dying just to serve the plot, be aware of cultural bias and tropes. How is the gender ratio looking in your cast? Is this happening disproportionately with your girls?

Note how Quiet Rain's litter had both a boy and a girl, but the girl was chosen to be "weaker" and wither away.

And how most of the time in DOTC, whenever a man had to be upset, a girl would get killed for it.

If you ever feel like the character on the chopping block is NOT a full character, ask yourself why it needs to be a character at all. You don't need to spend narrative time building out someone when a literal object of high value might suffice.

"My sister died when I swore to protect her and I can't face my family" = Old. Tired. Ive seen this.

"I lost my heirloom sword when I swore to protect it and I can't face my family." = Fascinating. Why was the sword so valuable? Will they really not take you back? How did you lose it?

When you do kill off "high value" characters, try to make sure you're not leaving too many plot threads hanging. Or at least make a point of how they will never get closure.

[vero-niche]

ooooh i see. i see how it is. okay. yeah right right. hm. im not getting out of this one huh

[tackykachowch]

By the way, did we ever talk about how stupid it is that they made Silco the reason Felicia died? I don't mean that he killed her personally, but that he jumpstarted violence on a peaceful protest. Because that's sooo who Silco is, right? A character who makes impulsive and poorly thought out decisions, right? A character who goes into a fight headstrong without carefully planning his moves and strategy and just YOLO-ing it, right? Right?? ......sigh

And don't even THINK about giving me the whole "wElL hE cHaNgEd SiNcE tHeN dUh" crap. Even s2 is smart enough to show us him writing something in a notebook in a flashback, which implies that he was the brains behind the Lanes' creation/revolution as a whole. And if he was he would never sabotage his own plans with something so stupid as throwing a single molotov at enforcers. Literally who does that???? Silco we know would probably organize an attack under the guise of a peaceful protest, but not just. Straight-up ruining just a regular peaceful protest. That's stupid. And Silco is the last character in arcane that would do something stupid. Literally the whole plot of season 1 relies on him being intelligent and sneaky with his plans are you kidding me.

[mylittleredgirl]

people call babylon 5 a “space soap opera” and they’re right! of course there are the sweeping dramatic arcs and the rise and fall of dynasties, but it’s also:

lochley being sheridan’s ex-wife for no reason and them keeping it a secret for half a season, also for no reason

that one episode where there’s an alien ceremony where everyone has to reveal a secret and fully three people confess their love

every time they block a conversation like this:

[weaponizedmoth]

Clarice. Inprnt | Instagram | Ko-Fi 

[doinkmaster5000]

Alright last post about it. But the problem with AvA 11 isn’t that Mitsi didn’t need to exist, or her personality, or whatever. Mitsi is great!! She’s thoughtful and curious and doesn’t take a backseat to Victim’s life! Awesome female-coded character!

The problem is that the only time AvA introduces female-coded characters, which are basically just Pink and Mitsi, it’s to kill them off for the sake of the plot of a non-female coded lead. In AvA, women are disposable, and only serve to make “bad guys” sympathetic.

It’s cheap, lazy writing and it’s. dare i say. misogynistic. I love AvA, I love the fandom it has inspired, and I hope the team can put more effort into the stories they tell in the future.

[lunarharp]

played dragon age 2...just simple scribbles

[wisebeth]

why does the pjo series have to unnecessarily villainize goddesses (hera & athena) or show them as silly ladies (aphrodite & demeter) BUT posiedon and apollo are somehow shown as the coolest/most likeable gods, even though arguably, they're right after zeus on terms of corruption?

ares shown as the worst god after zeus and hera amuses me. last time i checked, he was the patron god of amazons and literally killed a man for attempting to rape his daughter but guess who cursed women for rejection? apollo. guess who raped women when they said no (aside from zeus)? posiedon.

[autistically-zoinked]

People thinking that Daniel was gonna be the exception to the "all vampires are bad" rule is so funny to me! Like he fucked a girl with a bag over her head, he cheated on both of his wives, he admits to being a horrible father AND doesn't really care that Armand is going to kill Malik! If you saw him do all that and thought he was gonna be a nice vampire, that's on you.

[selene-moonie]

the creator of aot knew how to make war hit home.

talking about 150,000 people dead in a war makes it feel distant, but letting your viewer/reader get attached to a character and killing off their loved ones in the war hits much harder.

it's why we supported eren from the get-go. his mom was eaten by a titan. it would be reasonable for him to want them all dead.

but isayama kept doing it.

marco was so sweet. he was so supportive of jean. it was so messed up how we found out he was dead - in titan vomit. that hit home because what he'd told jean was true, that jean would make a great leader because of his quick thinking and ability to work with what he had. he was nice. i liked him. his death changed jean.

and then. you find out that reiner was the one who set up marco's death. years after marco's death, isayama has brought a war death home again. because he wasn't just titan food, his death was premeditated by one of their enemies.

and isayama did it with everyone, everywhere, all the time.

miche's death was so hard for me because he was this capable, amazing man with an insane sense of smell. and he shit himself before he died because the beast titan spoke.

that male soldier in the tower with reiner, bertie, historia and ymir - he wanted to drink the alcohol. the alcohol that historia didn't know she'd wasted on reiner's regenerative arm. that soldier died with no solace. it was just empty. a titan ate him. yeah he's a scout, but it was so fucking disgusting how it happened.

makes you think about how fucking disgusting war is.

[lab-gr0wn-lambs]

How does something like this happen. The guest has been here for 14 years. The guest has mortgaged the house. The guest has built an extension and all the homies have moved out.

[disgracefulthings]

Is it me or...

Is Han Sooyoung from Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint very similar to our resident hamster?

[vaggieslefteye]

MORE THAN ANYTHING - REPRISE ↳ from Hazbin Hotel Season One (2024): 1x08 - "The Show Must Go On"

[girlishwhimsies]

i love looking at hot takes and realizing that some outsiders fans don’t realize that fandom is something fun. nothing is truly that serious at the end of the day.

[osteochondraldefect]

i love spreading misinformation about what happens in this podcast aka.: bunch of thangs i drew but didnt feel like posting separately