This is just my opinion, but the MSQ's kinda weird with killing off characters. When NPCs die they often (but not always) fall in one of five categories, or multiple at once. Also this has spoilers up to 7.3, so if you don't wanna see that, turn back now.
The Villain
This is pretty self-explanatory. Any villain who dies is The Villain. It'd be weirder if they didn't die. And because it's expected, it tends to be better or at least decently written.
The Guy Nobody Cared About
When the writers don't wanna kill a more popular character, or they just wanna trim down the cast, they pick an unpopular one. Usually it's very obvious when they're about to die because the story suddenly pretends they matter. Geode's the most recent example.
The Woman
Before someone accuses me of saying it's bad to kill off female characters, let me make something clear: Not every woman dying counts. She's The Woman when the main reason she dies is to make a man feel sad. Moenbryda's probably the most well known of these but she's far from the only one. I'd argue the only part that doesn't do it is Endwalker.
The Already Dead
These are characters who've already died by the time we meet or learn about them. Sometimes they haunt the narrative through another character's backstory. Sometimes they literally haunt the narrative as a ghost (hi Ardbert). The Endless technically count but they're treated more like living characters until they're shut down.
The Disney Death
You know that trope in Disney movies where a character dies only to be resurrected or end up being alive all along? It's not just Disney. The writers use it when they wanna tug at your heartstrings without having to deal with potential backlash. Sometimes it happens to the same character more than once, like G'raha and Y'shtola.
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The Villain
This is pretty self-explanatory. Any villain who dies is The Villain. It'd be weirder if they didn't die. And because it's expected, it tends to be better or at least decently written.
The Guy Nobody Cared About
When the writers don't wanna kill a more popular character, or they just wanna trim down the cast, they pick an unpopular one. Usually it's very obvious when they're about to die because the story suddenly pretends they matter. Geode's the most recent example.
The Woman
Before someone accuses me of saying it's bad to kill off female characters, let me make something clear: Not every woman dying counts. She's The Woman when the main reason she dies is to make a man feel sad. Moenbryda's probably the most well known of these but she's far from the only one. I'd argue the only part that doesn't do it is Endwalker.
The Already Dead
These are characters who've already died by the time we meet or learn about them. Sometimes they haunt the narrative through another character's backstory. Sometimes they literally haunt the narrative as a ghost (hi Ardbert). The Endless technically count but they're treated more like living characters until they're shut down.
The Disney Death
You know that trope in Disney movies where a character dies only to be resurrected or end up being alive all along? It's not just Disney. The writers use it when they wanna tug at your heartstrings without having to deal with potential backlash. Sometimes it happens to the same character more than once, like G'raha and Y'shtola.
Continue reading...