Aimee Meester at To the Barricade! basically extended an open invitation for anyone and everyone to do this thing (thanks for that, because I think it will be interesting to actually figure this out). You should check out her blog because it is no joke the funniest blog I've ever read.
Basically, I have to list my top ten favorite characters from the screen. This means book characters will be left out, but they're in a separate level of amazing anyway.
These are listed from roughly least favorite to favorite (out of my favorites, if that makes any sense). A lot of swapping of places on the list went on though, and I'm sure they'll continue to switch around.
Hey look, I have gifs now! |
First of all, she's a prime example of a villain that we're capable of empathizing with. We totally understand why Maleficent hates the king so much (wouldn't you be just slightly angry if your boyfriend cut off your limbs and ran away with them?). Maleficent has a heart, even after going bad though. And her sass. Just yes.
Imagine the concentration needed to manipulate two objects at once. It has to be complex; so cool. |
8. Khan from Star Trek: Into Darkness.
He really was. |
7. Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader from the Star Wars universe.
Nevermind the fact that this is the fourth villain in a row. Anakin is sassy in The Clone Wars and Episode III just about killed me. I always spend the entire time screaming at Anakin from my couch, dumbly hoping that the outcome will somehow change. When he is evil he's sort of awesomely powerful and intimidating. but he's redeemed in the end. George Lucas did such a good job crafting Anakin's tragedy that it broke my heart.
Yes, except I'm pretty sure even I am a better actress than she was in that scene. |
Cool, calm and controlled genius. |
5. Rumpelstiltskin/Mr. Gold from Once Upon a Time.
The Rumple = "Meeah heh heh! Magic always comes with a price, dearie!" |
4. Sherlock Homes from BBC's Sherlock.
"High-functioning sociopath. With your number." |
3. Frank William Abagnale, Jr. from Catch Me If You Can.
This guy was so smooth. I'm impressed. He passed himself off as a pilot, a doctor, and a lawyer all before his nineteenth birthday and had gained so much money from his scams and forgeries and cons that I can't even remember the number. His ingenuity, intelligence, and ability to talk his way out of anything (I suspect ENTP) earned my admiration. He even escaped the FBI by pretending to be from some other governmental investigation organization, without any sort of badge. And he was a real guy. Yeah. Epicness. (As a side note, he ended up working with the FBI so I don't count him in as another villain on this list).
2. Neal Caffrey from White Collar.
"Boop!" |
His hats. |
1. Merlin from BBC's Merlin.
Poor guy. |
That's my list. I wish I had room for more gifs . . . now that I've used them, I like them. I also wish I could just write a entire post filled with Merlin quotes, but you can all just take a visit over to Pinterest for that.
So, what can you learn from your favorite characters? What traits do they all (or most of them) share? Think of this as a writing exercise and make a list of the traits which make good characters. By spotting it in the characters you watch and read you can be more conscious of putting it into your own.
I'm going to go with Aimee's example and not tag anyone in specific. Open invitation, everyone. I had fun doing this and you probably will have fun too. Warning, it may be difficult to figure out which characters make the list and which don't.
If you do this, leave a link in the comments. I'd love to take a look at other people's preferences in characters.
Merlin is my #1! The show and the character, really. Also love Rumpelstiltskin and Maleficent.
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh I'm in love with Merlin. Best TV show ever made.
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ReplyDeleteMagneto yasssssss. He almost, ALMOST made it on the list. I kind of love him a lot. So fabulous. xD And Ender! :D
ReplyDeleteI love how a bunch of these are villains...in true INTJ fashion, LOL.
I admire his power, which makes me sound like a tyrannical weirdo but it's true. *shrugs* and hey, if they made more REALLY smart heroes then my fave list wouldn't be 50% villain. :D I don't love the jntellectuals at all. XD
DeleteBy the way, I think Merlin is a INFP and both Caffrey and Abagnale are ENTPs, your N cousin. According to a book I read ETPs have exceptionally silver tongues.
Hey, I get that. WE NEED MORE SMART HEROES. Really. The villains shouldn't be the ones having all the fun, yeah? :P
DeleteAh! I know some INFPs personally...they're cool, but a little feely for me, haha. ENTPs are quite fabulous, though - I know some of those, too. And ExTPs are definitely the sweet-talkers, haha. I think ENTPs tend to use it more for debate and such, thought, while us ESTPs are like, the ultimate businesspeople. xD
Yes, I know a couple INFPs as well. One I know better than the other and he IS extremely emotional. Oh well, different type, right?
DeleteHaha, I think that's why I like Ender. He's a genius and a good guy.
I don't know any ENTPs but I want to. XD I once heard it said that ENTPs are like ESTPs except with a PhD on the end . . .Apparently they're one of the most well-paid types. Apparently a lot of INTJs in fiction have ETP counterparts, either friends or enemies. It helps balance out the traits I guess. Apparently Isaac Newton (INTJ) was once the overseer of the royal mint and had to track down a ETP counterfeiter who had actually infiltrated the mint itself.
Aaaand I just realized hoe much I used the word "apparently." . . . :/
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