{"id":38313,"date":"2020-09-14T06:30:39","date_gmt":"2020-09-13T18:30:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/?p=38313"},"modified":"2020-09-20T20:38:53","modified_gmt":"2020-09-20T08:38:53","slug":"having-fun-with-epic-fantasy-13-the-lovable-rogue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/2020\/09\/14\/having-fun-with-epic-fantasy-13-the-lovable-rogue\/","title":{"rendered":"Having Fun With Epic Fantasy #13: We All Love To Love — The Lovable Rogue"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Han Solo the quintessential “lovable rogue”<\/p><\/div>\n

Long before fantasy-dom began adopting anti-heroes as main characters (in my mind, Michael Moorcock was an early adaptor, with the Elric<\/strong> novels), the “lovable rogue” was an established, some would say essential part of the canon.<\/p>\n

Very often, the lovable rogue overlaps with the sidekick<\/a>, characters that (as discussed in Post #12<\/a>) sometimes morph into central, point-of-view (pov) protagonists in their own right. The single best example I can think of when it comes to both archetypal lovable rogues and assuming greater importance within the story, is Han Solo in Star Wars<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In the best lovable rogue tradition, he’s cynical and mercenary and out for himself—until the chips are down, at which point he comes through for his ‘band of brothers.’ He also has considerable charm and a similar “broth of a boy” mojo to Shakespeare’s Mercutio, although not quite so manic. (While duly noting that Mercutio is not in the fantasy genre.) Most importantly, viewers love him — also in keeping with the lovable rogue tradition — an enthusiasm that gave Han Solo a prominent place in the initial film trilogy and the Stars Wars canon.<\/p>\n

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Loki, from Marvel’s “Thor”<\/p><\/div>\n

So why do<\/em> we love the lovable rogue characters, pretty much wherever they appear? I believe it stems from the strong overlap to both the ‘sidekick’ and ‘band of brothers<\/a>‘ traditions, although the rogue can, of course, also be the main character. (They may also end being heroes, but it’s not the way they primarily present.)<\/p>\n

Their appeal is also\u00a0 strongly grounded in the trickster archetype, which is ancient, and based on a pantheon of gods, heroes, and folklore characters. Loki is one of the most famous, along with the North American Coyote, and Polynesian Maui. Puck features in English folklore (and Shakespeare), while in Greco-Roman myth we have both the god, Hermes\/Mercury, and that wily seafarer, Odysseus\/Ulysses. Just to name a very few examples!<\/p>\n

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Maui, in Disney’s “Moana”<\/p><\/div>\n

The trickster pantheon can be capricious and cruel, and they’re frequently up to no good, from mischief to outright wrongdoing, but when the chips are down they also come up with cunning plans to either aid the hero(es) or outright save the day. In my view, the trickster celebrates the attributes of cleverness, wiliness, and cunning that are a significant part of humanity’s competitive advantage in the universe. Much as we admire strength and courage, sincerity and idealism, we recognize that guile and invention are equally, if not more, significant if a ‘band of brothers’ is to carry the field and the day.<\/p>\n

In part because they are<\/em> so tricksy (which as Loki’s relationship with his Asgard peers illustrates, can be annoying at best) the rogue must also have lovable qualities: like their wiliness and wit, it’s a survival trait. So they are not infrequently charming and quixotic in their loyalties (such as they are), as well as useful in a tight corner. Sufficiently so to ensure their companions put up with their less endearing qualities and keep them around.<\/p>\n

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Enfants terribles<\/p><\/div>\n

Another element that I believe makes the ‘lovable rogue’ character both enduring and endearing is that they reflect our humanity, i.e. they’re so clearly not perfect. We see this with Merry, and particularly Pippin in The Lord of the Rings<\/em>.<\/p>\n

They are the closest to lovable rogues among the fellowship, although they’re more in the nature of enfant terribles<\/em>: more mercurial and irresponsible sidekicks than steadfast Sam, but far more human and relatable than the noble but overburdened Frodo.<\/p>\n

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Even enfants terribles must grow up<\/p><\/div>\n

Merry and Pippin also supply another appealing aspect of the lovable rogue — the redemption arc. Both, but particularly Pippin, have to give up their careless ways and come through for the fellowship and their friends, just as Han Solo comes through at the end of the first-made Stars Wars film.<\/p>\n

The lovable rogue provides audiences, whether readers, viewers, or listeners, with the reassurance that redemption is possible, while at the same time epitomizing all we may frequently long for in terms of being footloose and without a care (or, not infrequently, terribly many moral scruples) in the world — in itself epitomized by Spike, in Buffy The Vampire Slayer.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Spike arrives in Sunnydale…<\/p><\/div>\n

But maybe, as audience, we also quite like that feeling of moral superiority the lovable rogue affords, whereas with the heroes we may admire and aspire, but feel that such a high level of courage and integrity is beyond our everyday grasp.<\/p>\n

\"\"So, having talked Han Solo and Spike, along with Merry and Pippin, some of the lovable rogues that populate the pages of fantasy literature include:<\/p>\n