Richard's Animorphs Forum
Animorphs Section => Animorphs Forum Classic => Topic started by: rocklobster on June 15, 2009, 10:06:48 AM
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I was wondering if anyone out there thinks Melissa should've been a more important character. I've noticed that in some fanfics and in the RPG I'm on, she's a more important character and even one of the Animorphs. I think it would've been a great idea to flesh out her character more. What do you folks think?
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I think it would have been good. But lately, I could take the idea or leave it. At first, I didn't think there was much point in book 2, and a big way of making it more important would be to make Mellissa more important. But now I realise that book 2 is about Rachel finding her purpose in fighting. She does it for broken families. So book 2 really is important, even if Mel doesn't have a bigger role.
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Yeah. Melissa is kind of an extra character who doesn't out live book two. Still I always wonder what the heck happened to her during the invasion.
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She's one of many characters that might have been better fleshed out but unlike characters like Tom or Chapman (we don't know what Yeerk was in Tom's head or why he seemed to keep going to rising-star yeerks, we don't know why Iniss 226 is considered a high ranking controler but never actually seems to succeed anywhere) she's probably low on my list of people who should have been fleshed out.
Honestly character development for Melissa, Tom (or like a name for his Yeerk?) and Chapman/Iniss, some threatening moments from Visser Three, these would have been great things for the series to go over . . . instead we get field trips to Atlantis, the north pole, etc.
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I agree so much with you. But obviously KA didn't want too much focus on other things beyond the Anis. I know the books are titled animorphs, and the Animorphs are the main characters, but that doesn't mean you can't have a bit of focus and development on other stuff every now and then.
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Agreed. One wouldn't even have to take any focus away from the plot of the real book to give minor updates on characters at least, which while they're far from really expanding on a character, theyre at least a way of showing that the character remains relevant to the series.
If you have time to visit Atlantis, you have time to spare a paragraph for Rachel to mention "Melissa won the gymnastics competition, isn't that great?" just to show she and Rachel still speak at all since book 2 ended with them maybe or maybe not being on speaking terms.
Or to have Visser Three bark an order to Chapman but call his Yeerk a differen't name, like "Blindiss 622" to show that Iniss blundered enough to be replaced, or indeed moved to a more or less important host (Like Tom, heck I dunno . . . actually I kind of like the idea of Iniss being demoted, given to Tom, then becoming the vicious little beast that Tom's Yeerk was, rising back up through the ranks then stabbing Visser Three/One in the back only to be defeated by Rachel in her final although unwitting vengeance for the pain he caused Melissa . . . fanfic fodder), minor things could have been done but with ghost writers it may have led to continuity errors (Cassie's niece?) so I can see [at least one reason] why they didn't . . .
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i dont think anything would have made a difference if there was no melissa.
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That would have been interesting, if the Yeerk Rachel killed was Iniss. It would have also been good to have Rachel mention Mellissa in passing. I assume she put more effort in being with her, and their friendship grew stronger again, but it would be nice if there was strong canonical evidence for that.
Also, Tobias could mention Toby from time to time. Showing that the Great Liberator still thinks about his biggest fans. Of course he does go live with them at the ned, so we know he keeps in touch.
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i dont think anything would have made a difference if there was no melissa.
Yeah, she ended up being utterly unnecessary, but that's exactly the problem, she was supposed to be a major part of Rachel's life, her next best friend after Cassie, she has problems in her home, parents who emotionally abuse her which I guess is too mundane a problem for the Animorphs to care about beyond the whole "oh yeah, well your alien dad secretly doesnt hate you" note.
Rachel tries to comfort her for all of one book and we never see the resolution, did the note really help her so much that she became a well adjusted teen thereafter? Did Rachel try harder to keep them from drifting away or did she consider her work done? Why have her at all and just cast her away? In the end she might as well have not been involved and Chapman might as well have been Rachel's own father showing her no affection and Rachel can morph her own darn cat to sneak into daddy's office and listen in on his telephone calls. :P
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You may have been joking about that, but that seems like a good idea. Or morph his cat, since he's not living with her. That may even turn out to be why her mother divorced him. He got infested, and the Yeerk didn't care to keep the cover up, so she got frustrated and divorced him. Dang, that would be good!
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hmmmm were all discussing "if" she should have been, but has anyone stopped to think about how interesting another book 2 would be?
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What do you mean by "another" book 2?
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I think he means another book following the similar side plot to book 2. (make Melissa feel better). Which... I don't think that's at all what people who wanted Melissa to be a bigger character were saying.
And my own opinion on if Melissa should have been a bigger character is obvious by my bringing her into my fanfiction.
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So what are you doing with her in your fic? Additional Animorph, or some other role?
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uhhh, long story short, Rachel and Ax made a deal with the Drode to reverse time and 'try again', which sent the series back to book 20. Melissa ESSENTIALLY replaced Cassie after finding the blue box instead of David. But like I said, long story.
You can find the original rewrite of books 20, 21, 22 here http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4547995/1/Animorphs_Redux
and I just finished rewriting book 23 here
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4819381/1/Redux_The_Pretender
Both are also in the fanfiction area of this site.
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Having her find the box instead of David could be a good way to bring her in.
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wow. i really like these ideas. Chapman being Rachel's divorced father (except that would kinda take away from Marco's storyline, wouldn't it?) Or going back to changing things to Melissa being the one to find the blue box? Brilliant, although I'd have another plan.
Anyway, it would have been nice to see Melissa blossoming throughout the series, and Rachel becoming more engaged in her life. But I really would have liked for Melissa to become one of the Auxilliary Animorphs near the end. That would've been fair for her, to gain the power to fight the Yeerks that took her father from her. And she would understand why her dad had been so cold to her for so long.
Cool ideas though...
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I wasn't talking about Chapman being Rachel's father. Maybe someone else was.
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I know. That's who i was talking to...
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In relation to the Atlantis, North Pole comment:
I have the full collection of animorphs books still in my basement. Recently a friend noticed them an decided he needed to finish the series (got into the 30s as a kid). Some of his first comments as he reread most of the series were concerning how many unneccessary storylines there were. I tend to concur and must attribute it to the stupid ghostwriters. It's hard to develop main characters let alone supporting characters when more than one hand in "stirring the pot", so to speak.
I personally think the fact that KA delegated a majority of the latter books robbed us all of a lot of quality and (perhaps more importantly) relevant plot possibilities that went unexplored.
That said, I liked the Melissa Chapman character and would have liked to see her get involved somehow.
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Given how hard the Chapmans fought in book 2 to protect Melissa from being infested, I wonder how they would react if she became a Voluntary Controller?
Scene: At the Yeerk Pool Lounge: The Chapmans are chilling, waiting for their Yeerks to finish feeding. Sudeenly, Melissa bursts in the yell "I have just become a full member of the Sharing! Please say hello to my Yeerk!" I expect that Melissa's Parents would scream and faint.