I love stories and storytelling. Film, television, theatre, literature and music all fill our lives with warmth and thrills. Why are so engrossed in great stories? What makes us feel so bonded to a tale or two? Character.
Without great characters, there is no great story. And not just the lead characters. All of the characters are important, and it can be surprising by which ones leave lasting impressions.
More often than not, a great villain or anti-hero tugs at our hearts and we find the connection through them. So let's talk about some unforgettable voices in story...
Redditor u/tonaleo wants to chat about the characters from the arts that we feel connected to and why, by asking:
What fictional character do you feel bad for?
Can you imagine "The Wizard of Oz" without the witch? Or Toto? I always felt bonded with them first. I'm back and forth with Dorothy Gale.
Work Woes
This Too Shall Pass Advice GIFGiphy"Benson from Regular Show. Poor dude was just trying to do his job."
Sunk
"That one guy from Titanic. You know, propeller guy."
"I watched titanic as a kid when it came out on VHS with my cousins, we were all teary eyed until that moment and I laughed my butt off and my whole family looked at me like I was a psychopath."
Creature Discomfort
"The Creature from Frankenstein. All he needed was a little guidance and a little caring, but all Frankenstein ever did for him was turn him away (the coward). Well that and Guts. Geeze, did the dude lead a hard life."
"Yeah that book was awesome but Victor made no sense. Like, how ya gonna freak out at the sight of your creation when you are the one who made it look like that? He's always sh*tting on the creature for being so hideous and acts surprised about it. Didn't you spend months staring at the damn thing as you cobbled it together from dead body parts? What were you expecting, George Clooney?"
Poor kid...
"Barb from Stranger Things. They just moved her car to a bus stop and told everyone she ran away, and everyone just accepted it no questions asked (except for Nancy, but even she didn't seem too upset). Poor kid."
"Nancy was devastated, though. The second season revolves around her PTSD surrounding the fallout of death she blamed herself for."
Chewy Pain
star wars GIFGiphy"Obviously, Chewbacca. His best friend, road dog, partner in crime and in battle, Han Solo was murdered by his tormented flesh and blood right before Chewies eyes. I cried. Chewie cried. Kylo cried. Han didn't cry. He died."
I think about horror movies in this light sometimes. Many of the victims who get offed along the way can be remembered. I'm still traumatized by some.
Blue
walt disney GIFGiphy"Eeyore from Winnie Pooh. He tries so hard being a part of the others while at the other side he doesn't believe in his self."
Classics
"Zelda and Link from breath of the wild those guys just lost everything close to them."
"I feel bad for Mipha too. Poor girl was in love with Link since they were children, but she's too nervous to confess. Right when she builds up the courage to admit it, Ganon shows up and kills everyone. And her ghost had to hang out inside that giant robot elephant for a century not knowing what happened to him."
Be our guest...
"All the servers and butlers in Beauty and the Beast. THE HECK DID THEY DO WRONG YOU WEIRD OLD HOT CURSE LADY?"
The Prince who wouldn't let her in could hardly be blamed either. He was a child and was probably taught about "stranger danger" and probably thought he was doing the right thing by not letting in a complete stranger. It's unclear why he would personally answer the door himself anyway given the impressive number of servants and staff he has."
Oh Cappy
"Probably Captain Rex. He spent three years fighting for the wrong side without even knowing until it was too late, then all his brothers turned on him, and his one friend through it all was Ahsoka, who he had to say goodbye to, not knowing Anakin or Obi-Wan's fate, but knowing that all of his clone friends had turned evil, or died."
'one who got away'
Season 9 Fighting GIF by FriendsGiphy"David (Hank Azaria) from friends. Built up as phoebes 'one who got away' for almost all of the show, only to get awkwardly dumped while proposing to her. After which he kind of just walks away."
"There's a lot of things in the last season I don't like. It's like they tried to wrap everything up so fast they didn't stop to think if they were good ideas or not."
Poor Kid
"Helga from Hey Arnold. The episode focusing on her mother really hit hard for me back then."
"Helga's therapy episode made me cry when I was a little kid. Being so neglected as a five-year-old that you walk yourself to preschool in a dark ghetto, getting attacked by dogs and covered in rain, is such a traumatic thing for anyone to go through. Meanwhile, your narcissistic father and alcoholic mother are at your house, drowning the other child in love and attention while they can't even be f*cked to remember your name. Her parents should have been in jail tbh. Poor Helga."
That's quite a list. Poor Eeyore. And how lucky was Pheobe? Too have Hank Azaria AND Paul Rudd fighting over you? Check please!
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