Fictional Characters Meme!

[nenena]

Meme time! From the always-awesome Girl-Wonder forums. Also from Ami Angelwings, who used a slightly altered set of questions. I originally copied my questions from Ami's post and answered them, then went back to look at SKJAM's post, and was surprised to see that the original questions were slightly different. Well, I liked my answers to Ami's questions too much to delete them, but I wanted to have some more fun by answering the original questions as well. So in the end, I answered both sets of questions. I know, I'm a dork.

Anyway... the meme!

First, select ten fictional characters by whichever method you like best, and number them one through ten.

Here are my characters! I listed them alphabetically just because.

01. Arjuna
02. A.J. Crowley
03. Belldandy
04. Draupadi
05. Dana Scully
06. Dani Moonster
07. Hanon Houshou
08. Hermoine Granger
09. Lassie
10. Sailor Starfighter

Next, answer these questions!


#1. Divide the list up by even and odd. Which group of five would make a better Five Man Band (like a Power Rangers team)? Who would you slot in each position: Leader, Lancer (second-in-command), Big Guy, Smart Guy, The Chick? If you think the team would be improved by swapping one character between the even and odd groups, which ones would you switch?

Odd group: Arjuna, Belldandy, Scully, Hanon, Lassie
Even group: Crowley, Draupadi, Dani, Hermoine, Starfighter

This is a tough call. I'm going to say that the even group would make a better team, if only because all five of them have super special powers (as opposed to three in the odd group). Draupadi would be leader, and Hermoine and Dani could duke it out for second-in-command. Fighter would be the muscle. Crowley would be the smart guy, but generally too lazy (or just plain disinclined) to help out the group. Oh yeah, and Crowley would also be "The Chick," since he's the only male on the team.

The team would be better served if Crowley were swapped out for Arjuna. Hell, the team would be better served if Crowley were swapped out for freakin' Lassie.

#2 Ami Version. Gender-swap 2, 8 & 10. Which character would have the most change in their story arc? Which the least? Would any of these characters have to have a complete personality change to be believable as the opposite sex?

Crowley = woman!Crowley
Hermoine = man!Hermoine
Starfighter = OH SHIT YOU GUYS this is TOTALLY CANON.

I don't think that Crowley's story would change much if s/he were a woman. Actually, she would be an irksomely stereotypical woman, with her shopaholic traits, laziness, greediness, and tendency toward manipulative wiles. But her story wouldn't change much, if at all.

Hermoine's story would definitely change the most. Instead of being a stereotype-busting heroine, he'd be just another in a long line of brainy boy sidekicks. Although if he still ended up hooking up with Ron... Okay, now we're breaking stereotypes, but of a different kind.

As for Fighter, well... That's so already canon.

#2 SKJAM! Version. Gender-swap 5, 8 & 10. Which character would have the most change in their story arc? Which the least? Would any of these characters have to have a complete personality change to be believable as the opposite sex?

5 = Scully. Wow, that would pretty much change the entire dynamic of The X-Files, unless they wanted to go the slashariffic route. Scully would be a practical, sensible, and intelligent man. That's fine, but it's also boring, because we expect men to be practical, sensible, and intelligent. In short, man!Scully runs into the same problem that man!Hermoine runs into: these characters are interesting as women because they challenge sexist stereotypes. As men, they'd be fine characters, but they'd also be boring as hell.

#3 Ami Version. Compare the matchups of 1 & 8 and 5 & 9. (Ignore canon sexual preferences for the moment.) Which couple would be more compatible? Which couple would be more plausible to people from either principal's home culture?

1+8 = Arjuna and Hermoine
5+9 = Scully and Lassie

Arjuna and Hermoine might work. Mostly, I think it's just because Hermoine would like Arjuna a lot. They could talk about philosophy and politics, and get into astra vs. magic contests just for fun. As for Arjuna's part, well, we know he's not picky. The problem with that, however, is that Arjuna is polyamorous. I don't think, based on her behavior in the sixth and seventh books, that Hermoine would stand for that. She clearly prefers a monogamous relationship, and I don't think that Arjuna could do that for her.

Scully and Lassie... For the purposes of this question, I'M GOING TO PRETEND that "matchup" carries a TOTALLY PLATONIC MEANING. In which case, yes, if Scully had Lassie for a dog, the very universe itself would squee and possibly explode from sheer joy. Red-headed woman and sable-furred dog! It doesn't get much cuter than that. Also, Lassie would be useful for all of those times when Mulder gets himself abducted by aliens stuck down a well.

Also, Lassie could totally have taken that alligator that ate Scully's other dog. Totally.

#3 SKJAM! Version. Compare the matchups of 5 & 8 and 2 & 9. (Ignore canon sexual preferences for the moment.) Which couple would be more compatible? Which couple would be more plausible to people from either principal's home culture?

5+8 = Scully and Hermoine
2+9 = Crowley and Lassie

The first is a match made in Heaven. The second is a match made in Hell. We know that Crowley hates animals, so yeah... I feel sorry for poor Lassie already.

#4 Ami Version. Your team is 3, 4 & 9. The mission consists of a social challenge, a mental challenge and a physical challenge. Which team member do you assign to each challenge?

3, 4, and 9 = Belldandy, Draupadi, and Lassie

Draupadi gets the mental challenge. Belldandy gets the social challenge. Lassie gets the physical challenge. There. That was too easy.

#4 SKJAM! Version. Your team is 3, 4 & 6. The mission consists of a social challenge, a mental challenge and a physical challenge. Which team member do you assign to each challenge?

3, 4, and 6 = Belldandy, Draupadi, and Dani

This one also works out almost too easily. Belldandy is still perfect for the social challenge, Draupadi is meant for the mental challenge, and Dani can handle any physical challenge.

#5 Ami Version. 7 becomes 1's boss for a week in some plausible fashion. How's their working relationship?

7 = Hanon
1 = Arjuna

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

They wouldn't have a working relationship. Arjuna would have seduced and married her within the space of thirty minutes. Yes, I know that she's fourteen years old. But that's just how Arjuna rolls. (Also, we all know about Hanon's well-documented fetish for older men.)

Actually, something like this happened in the Mahabharata... Long story short, Arjuna ends up with a young princess, Uttara, as his boss for a year. At the end of the year, Uttara's father offers to let Arjuna marry her. Arjuna (for once) actually says, "Ew no she's like a daughter to me." But then Uttara ends up marrying Arjuna's son Abhimanyu instead.

The moral of this story? Hanon should marry Abhimanyu. So there.

#5 SKJAM! Version. 7 becomes 5's boss for a week in some plausible fashion. How's their working relationship?

7 = Hanon
5 = Scully

What the hell is a fourteen-year-old magical singing mermaid doing bossing around an FBI agent? No, seriously? What the hell?

This relationship probably would not work, except that Mulder would be really, really excited to having a working relationship with a real actual mermaid. Also, he would probably want to take her picture a lot. And take scale samples from her tail. Hanon would NOT be happy about that.

This looks like the set-up for a complete disaster.

#6 Ami Version. 2 finds him/her/itself inserted into 6's continuity. As far as anyone other than 2 or 6 is concerned, they've always been there. What role would 2 be presumed to have had in 6's story, and could they fit in without going wonky?

2 = Crowley
6 = Dani

I'm sure that a fanfic already exists for this, but... If Crowley were plopped down in the midst of the Marvel Universe, he would probably wile his way into coverting the Baxter Building into luxury suites, set up shop there, and spend the rest of eternity getting drunk and kvetching about how lame of a demon overlord Belasco is. Also, he would spent a lot of time messing around with Tony Stark's head. He would ignore Dani completely, because she's the type of character who's usually off his radar, or who would take too much of an effort to corrupt. Also, she's a Valkyrie, and Crowley doesn't quite understand what the deal with that is supposed to be.

I also think that Crowley would make a fantastic drinking buddy for Dr. Strange. But maybe that's just me.

#6 SKJAM! Version. 1 finds him/her/itself inserted into 6's continuity. As far as anyone other than 1 or 6 is concerned, they've always been there. What role would 1 be presumed to have had in 6's story, and could they fit in without going wonky?

Arjuna in Dani Moonstar's universe. This is almost too perfect. Arjuna is the one true original superhero, so he'd have no problem fitting into the Marvel Universe. He's probably end up at Xavier's mansion, simply because Xavier is the most experienced in dealing with "primitive superpowered people who suddenly find themselves stranded in the twenty-first century" (think Amara). As Arjuna is half-god and not a mutant, however, he would probably join the Avengers eventually, instead of the X-Men. He would need to join a group, though. He's not a solo act.

If Arjuna were an Avenger, though, he could totally become Thor's best friend. Then they could spend every day cavorting around and saving the world together, and then when evening rolls around, they could retire to a nice bar, get smashing drunk, and kvetch about their father issues.

#7 Ami Version. 3 and 5 get three wishes. The catch is that they have to agree on all three wishes before they get the benefits of any of them. What three wishes would they make?

3 = Belldandy
5 = Scully

Wow, there would be almost no fight over the wishes, since Belldandy would agree to whatever Scully wants, as long as it's not something like "I wish Keiichi would die a horrible fiery death in a motorcycle accident." Which, you know, Scully would never wish for. So the only question left is: If Scully had three wishes, what would they be? It's been forever since I've watched The X-Files, so I'm a little bit rusty, but I think her wishes might be somewhere along the lines of:

1. No more aliens. Just snuff that entire invading force out of existence. Or better yet, have them decide to settle on Venus or some other shitty uninhabitable planet, instead of Earth.
2. A child that isn't an alien hybrid, virus carrier, or anything else out of this world.
3. Threesome with Dogget? Pwease?

#7 SKJAM! Version. 3 and 7 get three wishes. The catch is that they have to agree on all three wishes before they get the benefits of any of them. What three wishes would they make?

3 = Belldandy
7 = Hanon

Again, the same problem as above. Belldandy is a professional wish-granter, so she wouldn't wish for anything for herself. So this question basically becomes, "What are Hanon's three wishes?"

1. Peace in the ocean forever.
2. Mitsuki, naked and tied up and covered in chocolate syrup and whipped cream.
3. Okay, okay. Threesome with Nagisa.

#8 Ami Version. 1 and 2 are brainwashed by a one-time artifact that works even on people immune to mind control to attack and kill 4. They keep their normal personality, skills and competence level, except any Code vs. Killing has been turned off. Can 4 survive? How?

1 = Arjuna
2 = Crowley
4 = Draupadi

OH SHIT DRAMA ANGST. But yeah, there's pretty much no question here - Draupadi is toast. Crowley doesn't even factor into the equation. #1 is the Goddamn Arjuna. Nobody survives the Goddamn Arjuna.

#8 SKJAM! Version. 6 and 3 are brainwashed by a one-time artifact that works even on people immune to mind control to attack and kill 1. They keep their normal personality, skills and competence level, except any Code vs. Killing has been turned off. Can 1 survive? How?

1 = Arjuna
3 = Belldandy
6 = Dani

Even at the peak of her reality-warping powers, Dani is no match for Arjuna. Belldandy, though... Assuming that she wasn't holding back anything, Belldandy versus Arjuna would be a fight for the ages.

Keep in mind that Arjuna has fought against - and conquered - gods before. But if anything, Arjuna would have a disadvantage in this fight, because he would probably be reluctant to attack a woman.

#9 Ami Version. 6, 7, 9 & 10 must help an orphanage full of small and depressed children have a merry Christmas. Who does what, knowing that at the very least the kids will be expecting a visit from Santa?

6 = Dani
7 = Hanon
9 = Lassie
10 = Fighter

Oh my gosh, dream team! Well, it's no question that Fighter would end up in the Santa suit, and you know that she would enjoy every minute of it, too. Heck, since she can change into a he, he'll probably do that just to help himself "get into character." So Fighter/Seiya will show up with the Santa suit and a bag full of presents. The others will provide pre-Santa entertainment for the kids. Dani will use her mad archery skillz to shoot an apple off Lassie's head. Hanon will sing, of course. And Lassie can do tricks. The big finale will occur when Santa shows up with the presents!

#9 SKJAM! Version. 1, 6, 7 & 9 must help an orphanage full of small and depressed children have a merry Christmas. Who does what, knowing that at the very least the kids will be expecting a visit from Santa?

1 = Arjuna
6 = Dani
7 = Hanon
9 = Lassie

Put Arjuna in the Santa suit, and we'll repeat the same scenario as above.

#10 Ami Version. 3 and 8 are challenged to circumnavigate the Earth in eighty days or less, using only forms of transportation invented before 1900. Can they do it, or will they be fatally distracted by sidequests or their own personality conflicts?

3 = Belldandy
8 = Hermoine

Both of these women have magical powers, and both can fly. Ummmmmm. Does "magic" count as "invented before 1900"?

Can they work together? Yes, I think they'd work together quite well. "Personality conflicts" won't be a problem. Distracted by sidequests? Depends. If this is Hermoine during the books (particularly during the seventh book), I don't think she'd want to take time away from studying/hunting for horcruxes/saving the world in order to race around the globe. As for Belldandy, I don't think that she would want to leave her sisters or Keiichi, unless she had a damn good reason.

In short, I think that the duo of Hermoine and Belldandy could circumnavigate the globe with a snap of their fingers, quite possibly literally. But would they do it? They would have to be coerced by extraordinary circumstances before either agreed to do such a thing.

#10 SKJAM! Version. 3 and 10 are challenged to circumnavigate the Earth in eighty days or less, using only forms of transportation invented before 1900. Can they do it, or will they be fatally distracted by sidequests or their own personality conflicts?

3 = Belldandy
10 = Sailor Starfighter

Fighter would have way too much fun doing this, especially if it involved a boat, a train, and a balloon. I don't know how well Hermoine would be able to put up with Fighter's impulsiveness and general, er, Fighter-ness though. Then again, Fighter isn't all that different from Ron. If Hermoine can deal with Ron, then she can deal with Fighter.

The original meme did not involve tagging, but I'm going to use the Ami wrinkle here and go ahead and tag five people. ;)

I tag furikku, goldenflames, ladykleo, meiousei, novel_tea, and anyone else who wants to do it. You don't have to answer both versions of the questions unless you really want to.

Comments

[lost-angelwings.livejournal.com]

XD

I changed the numbers b/c the original version was slanted towards certain numbers. :\ Like I think a couple numbers showed up 4 times and a couple showed up 1 time and it seemed sad to ignore some chars that much. :(

[lost-angelwings.livejournal.com]

Oh! Also many numbers showed up with each other in the same question a couple times making for less variety XD

[nenena.livejournal.com]

I like that you changed the numbers! It was more fun doing both versions than just one. ^___^

[lost-angelwings.livejournal.com]

And yay for spreading it around! XDDDD

I'm trying to make it infect EVERYBODY >:D

[ladykleo.livejournal.com]

Every time I see Lassie's name, I can't stop giggling. Especially when the poor dog gets Crowley as her "romantic" partner. :)

[(Anonymous)]

Heeheehee...I loved this.
Fighter is like Ron? I never thought about it like that before...but I do love both characters!
I think Fighter would be okay with Hermione. After all, she does put up with Maker and Healer all the time...*snicker*

[(Anonymous)]

Looks fun, I'll give it a go.
thx for the scans too.

-Hikage-