The Fantastic and Felicitous Fictional Character Tag

 Goody-two-shoes: A character who was just morally good

Matthew Cuthbert

Richard Farnsworth as Matthew Cuthbert

Everyone needs a man like this in their life. Matthew Cuthbert is one of the very first characters you meet in Anne of Green Gables. He's on his way to pick up what he thinks is a young orphan boy from the train station. Instead, he finds a skinny 12-year-old girl with fiery red hair and the ability to keep up both sides of the conversation at once. Even though she's not what he expected, he brings her home to the beautiful Green Gables and the rest is literary history. 

Anne and Matthew on their way to Green Gables

Matthew is a quiet and gentle character who doesn't speak that much but his presence is felt and the kindness that radiates from him leads to some of the sweetest scenes in the book. Why is he so morally good? He just is. Logic would have dictated leave Anne there, and send her home on the next train. Instead, he took her home, let her talk her mind out about the island, the house, and whatever flitted through her mind. He subtly intimated to his sister Marilla that he wanted Anne to stay. He buys Anne her first beautiful party dress. They sit by the fire and talk. He consoles Anne when she's banned from speaking to her best friend. He encourages her curiosity and inquisitiveness. Matthew's death rips Anne apart. He was the first person who ever noticed her, whoever took care of her. He was the first person who ever loved her. And it changed her life, forever.

Heartbreaker: A character who made you cry

Uncle Billy

Uncle Billy Bailey

"It's a Wonderful Life" is my favorite Christmas movie.  I watch it every year, sometimes multiple times, and this year I got to see it on the big screen at a dinner theater. So much fun! But there's one scene that gets me every single time. It's the cause of why Clarence has to come to Earth that night. When going to the bank to make a deposit, Billy stops to talk (spar) with Henry Potter, the villain. He accidentally wraps the money up in Potter's newspaper. When Billy realizes the money is gone, he is immediately distraught. Potter has discovered the money and lets Billy continue his frantic search. He gets George to helps them but in a scene a few minutes later it's apparent that they've been fruitlessly hunting for hours. George shakes Billy and shouts that someone will have to go to jail and it won't be him. Billy, a devoted animal lover, sobs at his desk as his pet raven and squirrel try to comfort their owner. The scene always gets me. Billy is a forgetful and somewhat unorganized man but he has a heart of gold. Potter knew who the money belonged to and let Billy take the heat for losing it. Seeing Billy's distress and watching him cry always gets me crying because someone else to advantage of him and his weaknesses. I have an autistic brother and there's a bit of a connection with the one who's just a bit different. In the end, it's all good, as the town comes together for George and his family, but I just can't get through that scene without a tear or two. Or two hundred.

Parrot: A character who won't stop talking

Beatrice

Emma Thompson as Beatrice

There were so many people I could have chosen for this one, but Ivy took my number one character (Benedick of Padua) so I chose his number one sparring partner, Beatrice. Benedick and Beatrice are two of the main characters in Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing". They are incessantly in a war of wits, words, and one-ups.  Sometimes they just try to do each other by seeing who can get the most word wedged into a conversation before the other can break in.

Benedick and Beatrice

While the two never shut up, they do end up becoming a happy couple at the end but even in front of God and everyone, they still refuse to confess their love until they're pretty much kicked into it. Benedick says he's taking her out of pity. Beatrice gets the last word when she tells Benedick she's only marrying him because she heard he was in a consumption - dying of tuberculosis. But as you can see from the picture above, they're both healthy and happy. But a simple "I do" just won't do for those two. 

Devilish: Your favorite villain
Q

John DeLancie as the immortal and obnoxious Q.

I am a die-hard, watched-every-episode, have books and clothes, Trekkie. I'm a child of Next Generation and one of the best characters, that villain you love to hate, is Q. Q is an immortal, omnipotent, obnoxious being that the crew of the Enterprise runs into about 7 minutes into the first episode. Q is both his name and the name of his people - a group of alien beings that live in a continuum and have all manner of incredible powers that range from slinging people across the galaxy to rearranging solar systems. It's intimated that there are many but only three are ever seen which is enough because Q takes up all the space in the room when he's around. In the first episode, he puts the crew of the Enterprise on trial for the crimes of all humanity through history. He lets them go with the understanding that the trial is not over and he will be checking in from time to time, which he does. And always to the chagrin and annoyance of the crew, particularly Captain Picard. 

Q as the judge at the trial of the Enterprise crew

Q loves creating drama, a bit of verbal sparring, as well as dressing in a Starfleet captain's uniform. It's discovered he has beef with the barkeep, Guinan and he warns them that they aren't ready for what awaits them. He leaves a trail of chaos in his wake and his arrogance about the ineffective and underdeveloped humans grates on everyone. He continues to pop up, once as a human because he's been exiled from the continuum for constant disruptive behavior. As time wears on he does genuinely try to help the Enterprise crew and seems to be gaining a bit of respect for the humans. Maybe. At the end of the show, we return to where it started - the trial. Q's opinion of humans has changed but he ain't about to admit that. He starts to tell Picard something about humans that it vitally important, but changes his mind because where is the fun in that? He assures Picard that humanity will figure it out on their own. Q is one of the most loved characters in the entire franchise because you know life is going to get interesting when he shows up. He would go on to appear in Voyager and Deep Space Nine but he always had a bit of a soft spot for Picard and the Enterprise, just like Trekkies have a soft spot for Q.

Love interest: A character who, if alive in reality,
you would want to marry

Konstantin (Kostya) Levin

Konstantin Levin is probably not a name most people know unless you're a reader of Leo Tolstoy. He's a character in my all-time favorite book, Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina".  (Now a side note: I've only ever seen one faithful adaptation of Anna Karenina and it's an old one in Russian. No one in the English-speaking world gets it right. The one with Kiera Knightly was awful overall, but Domhall Gleeson as Kostya was fantastic.)

Kostya sitting by himself at the harvest celebration

Konstantin, who goes by Kostya, is a young landowner with a good and pure soul. He has a large farm near Moscow and he visits the city often. He's a bit of a loner, as he's somewhat socially awkward, especially when in the city. He's not an intellectual like his half-brother Sergei or a rebel like his brother Nikolai, but he is fiercely independent and an old soul with much wisdom for his age.  Kostya struggles with his place and purpose in the world as he watches his own world, Imperial Russia, change rapidly and not always for the better. He prefers the simplicity of the peasant life and the peace of his own farm. He loves the beauty of nature and spends many hours talking walks on his land.

Kostya's romantic life is a bit of a tangle. He's in love with Ekaterina (Kitty) Shcherbatskaya, a young noblewoman that he grew up with. He proposes to her but is resoundingly rejected as Kitty is head over heels for Count Aleksey Vronsky, who has also been seeing her. Kitty's mother prefers Aleksey as he is handsome, charming, a military officer, and well-liked in the social circles of St. Petersburg (the capital at the time) and Moscow. Kitty's father, on the other hand, thinks Vronsky is a disingenuous person and much prefers Kostya. He ends up being right when Vronsky indicates he has no interest in marriage and had only been playing Kitty.

Kostya during the wheat harvest.

 

After being rejected by Kitty, Kostya returns to his farm. Unlike many farmers, he works alongside his tenants, from planting through harvest. He tries to understand the people who work for him and in many ways, envies their simple lives. He wants to be married, to have children, and even considers marrying a young girl whose family works for him but decides it would be unfair to her since he still loves Kitty. Kitty meanwhile has descended into a depression following her rejection by Aleksey. Kostya sees her in passing one day and rather than gloat because she's suffering exactly what she inflicted on him, he is sad for her because he knows just how she feels and hopes her heart heals faster than his. Kostya struggles in other ways because is also an extremely moral person and he strongly disapproves of the immoral lives of many of his companions, who encourage him to just find a woman, have a bit of fun, he doesn't have to marry her. Even a married woman would be good as they're often unhappy in their marriages. Kostya adamantly refuses to be drawn into their sordid way of living as he views marriage as pure and holy and if he cannot be with someone in that way, he will remain alone.

In the book, there are three types of relationships portrayed: Selfish, as seen in the marriage of Stiva and Dolly. Stiva's affairs and debts drive Dolly into the ground but they remain together for the sake of their children. Lust is seen in Anna and Aleksey. Aleksey wants another man's wife and he gets her. But the lust wears off soon and both are miserable and Anna throws herself in front of a train at the Moscow train station. Then there is pure love as portrayed by Kostya and Kitty. In the end, Kitty has matured and realizes the mistake she made in rejecting Kostya. Rather than be swept away by good looks and charm like she was with Aleksey, she wants the kindness, faithfulness, security, and pure love of Kostya. They rekindle their relationship and Kostya realizes that he did the right thing in waiting. When he brings her home after their wedding, Kostya is worried that Kitty will not like his much simpler home, seeing as she grew up in a palace. But Kitty is delighted. She loves everything about it because everything has Kostya's mark on it. Kitty works side by side with Kostya as they strive to make life better for their tenants and she delights in the work, simply because she is with Kostya. When their son, Misha, is born, Kostya is terrified. He worries that he cannot be the father a child needs but Kitty reassures him that they will learn together. At the end of the book, Kostya is standing in his home, with his wife and son, and has come to terms with one of his greatest struggles - his faith. He battled reconciling what he knows about a kind, loving, and gracious God with the evil, pain, and suffering he saw around him. He has come to realize that he is not called to understand everything. He is called to obey the commands of God. To love others, help those he can, be a faithful and godly husband and father, and leave the rest to God. In this, Kostya has finally found peace. 

Sidekick: A character who was always loyal no matter what

Jacob Kowalski

There were so many people I could have chosen for this one but in recent years, Jacob Kowalski, from "Fantastic Beasts" is one of my favorites.

Jacob Kowalski in his New York bakery

Jacob Kowalski is one of the few Americans in the Wizard World. He's a New Yorker Nomaj (American) or Muggle (British) meaning he has no magical abilities and no knowledge of the magical world. Until he runs into Newt Scamander at the bank. Jacob dreams of opening his own bakery but is flatly rejected for a loan. He picks up something that Newt left behind when he went running after one of his escaped pets. Newt ends up Apparating (transporting from one place to another) and taking Jacob with him. He intends to Obliviate Jacob's memory, wipe out memories of magic, but before he can, a confused Jacob decks Newt and grabs what he thinks is his own briefcase. Later on, in his apartment, he opens it up, expecting to find pastries. Instead, he turns twenty-some magical creatures loose in New York City. Newt catches up with him and calmly takes him into the magical suitcase. He sees nothing of having a Nomaj with him, even though it's strictly forbidden in the United States. Jacob is fascinated by everything and is right in the thick of it the entire time. 

Newt and Jacob inside the magic suitcase.

The boys team up with sisters Tina and Queenie Goldstein and he and Queenie hit it off immediately.  They leave New York in a bit of a shambles as they decimate Central Park and the zoo while looking for Newt's creatures, destroy a jewelry shop, take out the entire top floor of Macy's, cause a brawl at a magic speakeasy, escape from prison at MACUSA, flatten most of Manhatten, and destroy about 50% of the New York subway system. In the end, Jacob does end up Obliviated but a mysterious passerby drops a suitcase in front of him as he leaves work one day. In it are solid sliver eggs, more than enough for Jacob to start his bakery. And the star attraction is all of his incredible pastries of animals that seem - well, magical. And then there's the girl that walks in at the end...

The boys are back in town! Paris this time.

A year later Jacob has regained his magical memories and is reunited with Newt. Newt doesn't even think twice about taking Jacob on his next adventure and the two are soon on their way to Paris. This time though, Jacob sees the dark and sinister side of the magical world. A veteran of the First World War, he is horrified to see the possibility of another one. He is devastated when Queenie, who desperately wants to get married to him but can't due to laws concerning marrying Nomajs, decides to follow the enticing words of the villain of the story. For Jacob, the easy way out would be to have Newt Obliviate him again and head back to New York. At any point, he could have just walked away. What's the wizarding world to him? But he stays. He's a bit odd, like Newt, and he has the same sense of right and wrong. So he stays. He may not understand everything about the wizarding world, but one thing is for sure, Jacob has your back.

Complicated: A character you love and hate

Quark

For this one, we return to Star Trek and head to the Space Station Deep Space Nine. There, at Quark's Bar and Grill, you'll find the proprietor, one of the sneakiest, slimiest, and occasionally heroic people on the station.

The incomparable Quark

Quark is a member of a race called the Ferengi. They're distinguished by their bulging bald heads and gigantic ears. The Ferengi are motivated by one thing and one thing only, profit. Rather than laws, they have The Rules of Acquisition. Instead of a parliament, they have the Tower of Commerce. Instead of a president, they have The Grand Nagus. In a society where the Federation has ceased to use money, the Ferengi stick out for their desire for gold-pressed latinum, profit, and material possessions. They lie, cheat, steal, and claw their way to the top. Punishment is the removal of business licenses and the inability to trade in the Ferengi commerce structure.

Odo and Quark, the best of frenemies

Quark is a bit of an enigma. He lives on Deep Space Nine, surrounded by mostly Bajorans and Humans. He runs the local bar with his brother Rom and nephew Nog, whom he treats like idiots. He's the one with the lobes for business. The bar is one of the central points on the station and everyone hangs out there for food, drinks, Dabo, darts, or holosuites. Despite the desire for profit, Quark runs one fine establishment. Not many people trust Quark though, as he also ran the bar when the Cardassians, the enemies of the Bajorans, ran the station. Ferengi loyalty can be bought for enough latinum and Quark is always looking for a quick profit. He's also been known to run a smuggling operation or two and the chief constable, Odo, keeps a close eye on him. Quark and Odo have a love-hate relationship that provides some of the most hilarious scenes in the show. As time wears one of the most disturbing things begins to happen. Quark starts to develop a conscience. Considered a fault of the "Hew-mahns", Quark's development of a moral side is a shock, not just to him but to others. He willingly gives up profit to help others, saves Odo's life, becomes an informant when the station is occupied by the Cardassians and takes the side of the Federation in the final battle with no thought to his own safety or profit. Just don't let the rest of the Ferengi Commerce Guild know.

Oddity: A character who was strange but you loved them anyway

Hercule Poirot

You wouldn't expect your favorite odd character to be the lead in one of the most successful book and television series in history but yet, here we are. 

David Suchet as Hercule Poirot

Hercule Poirot is the central figure in Agatha Christie's world-famous series. He's a retired Belgian detective who emigrated to England after the royal houses of Europe began to collapse in the early 20th century. He settled on one of the more affluent areas of London and set up practice as a private detective. But Sherlock Holmes he is not. In fact, he frequently pokes fun at him. Order and method - that's Poirot's catchphrase. Rather than tromp out around the crime scene looking for clues only in broken branches and footprints, he tries to get into the psychology of the criminal. The use of his "little gray cells" is what works for him. As you can imagine, Poirot is a man of precision. He's always dressed to the nines with his famous mustache, waistcoats, bow ties, spats, watch chain, matching gloves, and bowler hats. He minces rather than walk so he doesn't muss his pants and he carries a handkerchief, not so much to keep his nose or mustache tidy but rather to sit on when the available seats are questionable. His apartment is no less impressive. Not a single thing is ever out of line or out of place. A simple knick-knack askew or a slightly tilted picture will ruin his day. His tastes are as odd as his behavior. He drinks tisane, an herb tea that no one else can stand, and eats only the finest of foods. He abhors English food, mushy peas, and overcooked beef in particular. I agree with that one. He is annoyed when people refer to him as French rather than Belgian and frequently peppers his speech with little phrases of his native language. Despite his oddities, he has a sweet temperament, if a bit pompous, and a gentle smile that puts the most nervous client at ease.  

The core cast: Chief Inspector Japp, Hercule Poirot, Miss Lemon, and Captain Hastings

Of course, he needs a crew to help him with his cases and they're as devoted to him as he is to them. First is Chief Inspector Japp of Scotland Yard, who is as unlike Poirot as he could be. At first, Poirot irks him but over time he grows to greatly respect him and seeks his help frequently. Then there is Miss Lemon, his secretary, who is always ready with the needed paperwork. Last is Captain Hastings, a retired military officer who always comes to the wrong conclusions and has a penchant for female sob stories, especially if the woman has auburn hair. Poirot is also an extremely moral man. A devout Catholic, he believes firmly in right and wrong and in the rule of law. Most of the time, the answers are easy, this person broke the law, they pay the price. Until the Orient Express. There Poirot is confronted with what happens when the law fails you? What happens when good people do the wrong thing for the right reason? What do you do when you agree with the criminal? Here, we see the other side of the odd little Belgian detective. The moral struggle, the agonizing decision, and the little gray cells that have failed him. Now he must decide as a human, caught in the middle of a human drama from which no one will ever truly recover.

Poirot leaves the Orient Express after making the most difficult decision of his career.

Queen/King:
A female/male character who you admire and aspire to emulate

Lucy Pevensie

Little Lucy Pevensie was my first favorite character in a book. I was young, maybe 6 or 7, when my mom first read "The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe" to me. 

Lucy finds the lampost in the wardrobe.

Lucy is a small girl who is evacuated to the countryside of England during the Blitz of World War II London. She and her older siblings, Peter, Susan, and Edmund, end up at the huge country estate of an eccentric retired professor. While playing hide-and-seek, Lucy hides in the wardrobe in the empty room on the top floor and realizes that there's more in the wardrobe than old fur coats. There she stumbled on a world of eternal winter with fauns, witches, spells, and a host of magical creatures. When she tries to tell her siblings about her discovery they think she's playing, especially when they go to the wardrobe and there's nothing there but the plain wooden back of any other wardrobe. Lucy sticks by her story and the others soon end up in the wardrobe as well. There they realize that there is much more going on than they realized. Eustace has betrayed them to the white witch and they must get to the Stone Table to meet Aslan. The four end up being crowned the kings and queens of Narnia and spend an entire lifetime there. One day, during a hunt in the woods, the four siblings, now adults fall back out of the wardrobe, to the exact point they originally entered it. They all four would return again and Edmund and Lucy would go back a third time. In the last book, they all return together, but to another part of Narnia that they have never seen - the Shadowlands. they have died in a train crash and have returned for the last time, to stay forever.

Lucy returns to Narnia in Prince Caspian

So what is it about Lucy that I admire? Her faith. She knew she had been to Narnia, even when the wardrobe shut them out. She believed that they would return someday. She believed that they would find Aslan. She believed that Aslan would save them when they were about to lose the battle. Lucy is the model of true and childlike faith. As her faith grows, Aslan seems to get bigger. When the others don't believe she's seen Aslan, despite the fact that she was the first to go into the wardrobe and no one believed her then, Aslan comes and tells her that she must continue and follow him, even if the others will not go with her. So she does. She is the one who led the others to Aslan, more than once. Her faith, whether in their world or in Narnia, is what keeps the group both moving and safe. When her sister Susan abandons Narnia, Lucy remains true - the true queen. She lives up to her name: Queen Lucy the Valiant. 

Queen Lucy the Valiant as an adult, right before going back through the wardrobe.

Savior: A character that reminds you of Christ
Frodo Baggins and Sam Gamgee

This one isn't just one character. Rather it's two who worked in tandem to save the world they loved.

Frodo and Sam watching the Elves leave Middle Earth at the beginning of their journey

Frodo Baggins is a young Hobbit living in a quiet corner of Middle Earth called The Shire. He lives at Bag End with his Uncle Bilbo, who has had more adventures than is 'normal' for a respectable Hobbit. Samwise Gamgee is the Baggins Gardener and Frodo's best friend. When Bilbo disappears on the night of his 111th birthday, Frodo inherits everything, including his uncle's magic gold ring. When their friend, wizard Gandalf the Grey, discovered the ring is actually the One Ring, a dangerous object imbued with dark magic, Frodo and Sam are sent to take the ring to Rivendell, to level it in the safekeeping of the Elves. On the way, they pick up Pippin and Merry, two younger Hobbits. They're chased by the Nazgul to Bree where Gandalf fails to appear. Strider, later revealed to be Aragorn, heir to the throne of the humans, gets them moving to Rivendell but Frido is injured by the Nazgul on the way. He recovers in Rivendell under the care of its master, Elrond. At a meeting, there is a great argument over what should be done with the wring and who should do it. Little Frodo states he will take the Ring to Mordor and destroy it, but he doesn't know the way. Sam and seven other companions agree to go with him and the journey begins.

The Fellowship of the RIng

The Fellowship ends up splitting up and going separate ways. Frodo and Sam continue to Mordor. Two simple Hobbits in a world they don't understand. Yet Frodo is determined to fulfill his task. The ring is calling to him and he feels the pull to give in and take it for himself. This is where Sam comes in. Every time Frodo is near failing, Sam pulls him back from the brink. He reminds him of his task and Frodo continues on. He comes to realize that destroying the ring will destroy him, and he accepts this fate. He knows that the salvation of all of Middle Earth rests on his shoulders and he continues up the mountain. When he can no longer climb, he is carried by Sam. When he hesitates to destroy the ring, Sam urges him on. When he nearly falls into the pit, Sam saves him. Sam is the one character who carried the ring at some point and is not tempted by its power. He and Frodo destroy the ring together and then wait to die themselves. They are rescued and hailed as heroes by the Humans and Elves. And then they go home.

Merry, Frodo, Sam, and Pippin back home at The Green Dragon

But life just can't go back to normal for the four Hobbits after what they've seen and what they've been through. Sam marries and has children as do Merry and Pippin, but they're always a bit different from everyone else. Frodo continues to suffer from his wounds and when his dying uncle goes to the Grey Havens to leave Middle Earth with Gandalf and the last three Elves, Frodo stuns them all by leaving as well. He turns the book that he and Bilbo have been writing over to Sam for him to finish. And so, he leaves Middle Earth forever. Sam returns home to his wife and children to carry on in Frodo's stead.

Frodo and Sam say goodbye at the Grey Havens

Why these two make me think of Christ is their self-sacrifice for the salvation of all others. Frodo is the one who knows he may die, Sam is the one who knows what must happen and is willing to die as well. Together they are a Christlike figure, the ones who put all others ahead of themselves, to save some people who don't think they need saving, who receive little thanks at times, but know they have done what is required of them, and do it with hearts filled with love for others, putting themselves last.