David

[Chad32]

You're not the only David sympathizer around.

[Bassline]

I don't feel sorry for David at all, but I actually think the character was pretty realistic. Most kids that age would not handle the situation nearly as well as the original animorphs had. What David did was pretty evil, but his attitude was understandable considering his past (no friends, moved around a lot)

[Viss3r]

I agree that most kids would freak out... But I don't think that most kids would reason "Your just a bird Its ok to kill a bird, not a person"  I think most 14 year olds don't kill birds and other animals... isn't that a precursor to a serial killer or something.

I'm sure that animorphs wouldn't let him just walk away but I'm sure they would have let him perhaps not fight, at first but towards the end no way.  Yes I hated David with a passion.  In particular how he was towards Rachel.

And Visser 3 was bad, but any worse than Visser 1 (Edriss) or toms yeerk?

[Ash]

I hated David from the start. The idea of another Animorph? Not good. I'm glad he turned out so evil

Would've been nice, though, if they had intro'd a girl at that point. A female David!

[JFalcon]

I'd say my main problem with David was that I didn't consider him to be . . . well, very smart, but the Animorphs apparently did. He seemed to have a certain mental block barring him from understanding a few basic concepts, like for example being an Animorph was not at all like being in school, he keeps coming back to the Animorphs being some sort of clique and how he's the new guy that nobody likes and it gets really irritating after a while, he actually uses that nonsense hand in hand with Tobias not being a human to justify murdering him, many of the things he says just show me an insecure kid who tries to be cool by owning a cobra which is illegal, but telling people about it, is clearly jealous of characters like Rachel and just really isn't capable of grasping the situation he's in, and that kind of stuff can be forgiven except that killing someone over that bull is crossing a major line, feeling left out, jealous, and confused doesnt equal a right to take human life even if it isn't in human form David did this or at least thought he did it once and kept trying to do it again.

I do think however that the Animorphs made one major mistake that made David's choices seem more limited to him, see with Jake he just knew they'd try to rescue Tom, Marco's initial reason for remaining with the group was only to help Jake, and with Marco's mother Marco knew Jake would never let her stay a controller and Jake said as much, see nobody even once suggested to David that they'd rescue his parents, did he even know that was on the table? Did they even think of it? I don't remember them ever even saying that they'd try, and why not? Sure Visser Three would be expecting it at first, but if you're going to be so ambitious as to plan on rescuing Visser One who isn't even on earth most of the time the least you can do is tell David you'll try to rescue his parents, give the kid some incentive, instead he had none.

David didn't really have anything to fight for, what was in it for him? Continued survival? That was arguable because the missions could get him killed, so what else? Friendship? He was too closed off to let the others even try to be his friends, and lets face it, kid was kind of a jerk anyway. The only perk they told him about was turning into animals, but when he did so without supervision Jake threatened him, David wasn't a member of the group he really was just the new guy nobody really liked (. . . but he didn't have to keep saying it!)

Honestly I do wish it had worked out with David, he had a certain charm before he went JtHM on everyone and you know Rahcel must have wanted to ask him how he got a friggin' Orca morph. But then agian I wish a lot of things, doesnt mean they're going to come true. In the end David done effed up, it wasn't entirely his fault that he did, but he did, and how could they trust him to stop?

[Chad32]

The fact that the Anis just forgot David's parents or something, and that they put him in Cassie's barn instead of Erek's guest bedroom, really didn't help the situation. If they weren't so focued on an admitedly extremely important mission, things might have been different.

[OrcaMorph]

Rahcel must have wanted to ask him how he got a friggin' Orca morph.

I just assumed he got it from the Gardens, just like the Animorphs did in the Nartec book

[Terenia]

Falcon, I don't think that David was unintelligent. I think that he, much like Rachel, allows himself to be ruled by his emotions. Unlike Rachel, he also lets his ego step in. If he stopped to reason and think about the situation, perhaps things would have ended differently. But everything happened very quickly and most of David's moves - even his "well-thought out" plan to capture/kill the Ani's were all based on an emotional investment. He lacked Marco's ability to see clearly from point A to point B, and he let his emotions take him much further than he would have if he had an objective viewpoint.

[JFalcon]

Falcon, I don't think that David was unintelligent.

No problem, I'll think it enough for us both 

I think that he, much like Rachel, allows himself to be ruled by his emotions. Unlike Rachel, he also lets his ego step in. If he stopped to reason and think about the situation, perhaps things would have ended differently. But everything happened very quickly and most of David's moves - even his "well-thought out" plan to capture/kill the Ani's were all based on an emotional investment. He lacked Marco's ability to see clearly from point A to point B, and he let his emotions take him much further than he would have if he had an objective viewpoint.

That sounds about right really. I stand by my earlier comment that his inability to see past his school popularity mentality was irksome, but I'm willing to agree that he's ruled by his emotions and ego, that he was often rushed, I just don't see how this makes him any more intelligent. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't trying to say David was some kind of drooling idiot, just that he was not the genius he's made out to be by . . . well, mostly himself. David can be thick at times but no more so than any of the other Animorphs, but see David doesnt actually do anything to make me feel like he's as brilliant as he thinks he is or that he's as clever as the Animorphs later pretend to think he is.
But as he tries to fight the Animorphs every move he makes with the exception of morphing Sadler, which really was quite clever despite some minor flaws, is either predicted by the Animorphs (they knew he'd be listening in on their meetings for example) or based entirely on luck (actually getting away with morphing Marco both at Marco's house and at the school) reading as a kid the only time he ever impressed me was when he caught the animorphs off guard as a killer whale, but I'm old enough now to see what really happened there, he was just lucky to have the orca morph, he didn't get it because he planned on killing dolphins that night, he had no way of knowing they would be dolphins that night. He'd gotten it beforehand because he wanted it and it turned out to be useful. He was probably there as an eagle hoping to take them out as gulls, saw them come out of the sea, figured out that they were some kind of sea creatures, morphed orca and had they been orcas as well he very likely would have backed off. He didn't outsmart them he just got lucky.
In fighting the Animorphs David was often lucky, not brilliant. Not stupid by any means either, but definately not brilliant.

[Chad32]

You're right about that. In almost every way, he was outpredicted. Though the only reason he lost in the end was because he killed the wrong red tailed hawk. Had Tobias actually been dead, David would have them at his mercy. Four ****roaches in a bottle, with only Rachel was a fellow rat. If memory serves correctly, which it doesn't always do.

Does anyone think the rat morph may have been symbolic? People believe Tom's Yeerk's choice of morphing a snake was symbolic in the end. Maybe trapping David as a rat was also symbolic.

[JFalcon]

Actually David also made the mistake of not caring who the Animorph's allies were, had Tobias really been dead Erek could have been the one who let them out and he doesnt need a morph to stay hidden so the plan to get David in the end still could have worked if Tobias had truly been lost. He might not have been willing to help them trap David as a rat, but then again they might not have told him. Tobias did contribute greatly in other ways though, like observing Erek so who knows?

As for symbolism, I think one of the animorphs mentions how David turning into a rat is fitting, so probably 

[Chad32]

Yeah, it could have been someone else. But with the knowledge that David had, it was a solid plan. Does that count for anything?

If I was going to make him a villain, I would have made him the kind that's ruled by emotion anyway. Not genius. Much like how Rachel is portrayed later in the series.

[CrimsonRose15]

I think that David is a perfect case study of an individual with antisocial personality disorder, or, as it is more commonly known as, socio-pathology.  However, we would have to go with a diagnosis of Conduct Disorder because an individual must be 18 or older to receive a diagnosis of APD.  Here is the criteria for conduct disorder:

Aggression to people and animals
   (1) often bullies, threatens, or intimidates others
   (2) often initiates physical fights
   (3) has used a weapon that can cause serious physical harm to others (e.g., a bat, brick, broken bottle, knife, gun)
   (4) has been physically cruel to people
   (5) has been physically cruel to animals
   (6) has stolen while confronting a victim (e.g., mugging, purse snatching, extortion, armed robbery)
   (7) has forced someone into sexual activity
   Destruction of property
   (8 ) has deliberately engaged in fire setting with the intention of causing serious damage
   (9) has deliberately destroyed others' property (other than by fire setting)
   Deceitfulness or theft
   (10) has broken into someone else's house, building, or car
   (11) often lies to obtain goods or favors or to avoid obligations (i.e., "cons" others)
   (12) has stolen items of nontrivial value without confronting a victim (e.g., shoplifting, but without breaking and entering; forgery)
   Serious violations of rules
   (13) often stays out at night despite parental prohibitions, beginning before age 13 years
   (14) has run away from home overnight at least twice while living in parental or parental surrogate home (or once without returning for a lengthy period)
   (15) is often truant from school, beginning before age 13 years

[Adrian Malacoda]

I rather liked David as a villain. He seemed more lifelike than the Yeerks or Visser Three, at least. He seemed to be right in the action all the time, whereas Visser Three was kind of in the distance going "I'll get you Andalite bandits next time!!1"

Although, honestly, it's a good thing he wasn't made regular, or else it would have gotten old. There's only so much you can do with a character like him.