Let's get topical, I have other stuff planned, so this is good to do now.
So, in my time in the anime community, I've seen so many "interesting" conversations about
character development.
For example, "This character is good because of their growth, then there's this terrible
character because they don't change."
And an average summed-up discussion is that "Oh, some characters don't mean to change."
And that's an easy way to sum it up, but I've had enough conversations about it, so I'm
willing to have that discussion today.
First, let's grab an example character.
I make JoJo videos, so let's use Jotaro Kujo in Stardust Crusaders.
Now I don't hear too much talk against Jotaro's nature, and I think that's mainly because
of the execution.
You understand that Jotaro is meant to be a badass.
Right?
The changes to his character are subtle, but you know that Jotaro's a better and stronger
person by the end of his journey.
His character development isn't extreme, but it's nice, and the guy is significantly liked.
For the most part, main characters in shonen clean up their act more than anything else.
Naruto was a clown and a loner, but his determination was always there.
When he grew up, he wasn't as goofy, and he had developed a lot of relationships.
That's what you'll get off the surface alone.
When you think about Naruto, you also consider what he's seen, how the ninja world affects
all types of people, what war does to people, and its pain.
He's an extremely knowledgeable person now, and his dream of being Hokage isn't just a
dream for some dumb kid.
He's made for the position, especially considering he's one of the franchise's most considerate
and conscious people.
So, subtle character change is good, and major change is also good.
What does that say about no change or even a negative change?
Well, for the most part, most media we consume has the character be themself more than anything,
and modifying them isn't required much.
For example, let's say I pop on Bobobo, or a Batman comic, something.
I don't expect Bobobo or Batman to change in everything I see them in.
I honestly like seeing them do them, and that's about characterization, not development.
Like I like Vegeta and seeing him grow.
That's cool for its reason.
I also like Broly for just swinging on everyone.
That has nothing to do with him over time and his development.
To me, he's just that cool in his characterization.
There are a lot of characters who don't change that much, and they're cool.
Now, the thing that I dislike the most is a boring character.
You can change a lot, not at all, or change for the worse.
That's all good, as long as it's not dull.
And it's not even against regular characters either, because there's always a place for
them.
It just depends on who's writing it and their execution.
Imagine that you got a group of vampires, and posted up right beside them, is Stu.
He's not a vampire or anything, he's just Stu, and he's hilarious by being normal.
It's all about having stuff in the right time and place.
I like Mumen Rider in One Punch Man because he's in One Punch Man.
If it were an anime about a bunch of Mumen Riders, it wouldn't be as impactful or fun.
It's like the Syndrome idea that if everyone is super, no one is.
It's all about how you use it in the story's context.
Also, I feel like I didn't need to really talk about characters getting worse.
As a society, we've done pretty well showing that we like a fair share of villain arcs.
Walter White, the Joker, Jinx, Citizen Kane, Anakin Skywalker, Tai Lung, there are a lot
of characters like that.
And they're pretty damn interesting- because that's what everyone wants.
You consume entertainment because you want to be entertained.
Everything else comes second realistically.
That's why I'm so, I guess, doubtful when I hear that a character is bad because of
their development.
A lot of the time, they're just boring to the person.
So bigging up significant change as a must-have for characters is pretty ridiculous.
But remember, this is a case-by-case basis.
I don't want this video to be used as a reply to every person who doesn't like a character
you like.
My points aren't going to answer every person who finds a character boring.
Sometimes people are for'real boring!
The game is the game, you find out when you play.
Thank you all for watching!
If you liked me getting general with it and would like to hear me cover random topics,
I'm probably down.
Just leave likes and comments and I'll know.
Hopefully, I'll see you all in the next one.
Until then, peace out and godspeed.