What touches you?

What touches you?

Fires your imagination?

Keeps you coming back?

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Me? Ahh...ok. I'm easy. Anybody who knows me knows I'm always drawn to the Bad Boy or Bad Girl. Can't help it. Those are the ones who hold the biggest surprises, the biggest emotional charge, the boldest--or briefest--futures.

From "The Tribe," forget about Amber totally. Forget Salene until you got around to Season-5 when she kicked back finally. Add to that Ellie, Dani & Taisan. I was watching Ebony, May, Moz, Alice, Ruby & any girl who had the guts to survive without waiting on somebody to hold her hand.

Guys? That's even easier. Bray was a bust. Ryan was sweet but ultimately useless, and mostly Pride didn't have a clue. Put the spotlight on Lex, Slade, Jay, Ram or Mega. That's where the action & power & interest was. You could count on it from the minute they came on scene.

Yeah, I guess that shows up in my KTDARPG characters.

The girls are all over the place--from crazy-ass "Villa" & metamorphosing "Cecily" to strong but ultrafeminine "Valentine" to useless-but-we're-working-on-it "Jade." The girls I really have fun watching when they're in top form are conflicted "Eris," warrior-without-a-war "Hawk," the exotic "Blackrose" & kick-ass Arianna. (I'm waiting to see what becomes of the new bard "Jenna" & where "Maggie" winds up.)

I haven't done too many male characters, and the best ones were pretty short-lived: psychotic "Nemesis," the man of many faces "Bishop," and the behind-the-scenes newspaperman "Cosmo." The guys I watch are a blast--Prince & Marionette, Ace & Tristan & Urick, Vincent & the enigmatic Scarecrow. If I could I'd put every one of 'em on tv in a heartbeat!

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The point? Well, yeah, there is a point here. For me, I figure out what it is I like about the characters I enjoy watching & try to put some of that in my own characters. If it's a depth of emotion or commitment I appreciate, I try to emulate that. If it's just a wild, carefree attitude then it's fun to try to play with that inside my own creations.

So there you have it. Moral of the Story: Steal everything! Hehe...ok, not quite that. But find those traits you appreciate--in other people, other characters, or even inside yourself--and put those into the characters you create.

Bottom line, they'll be more "real" and people will enjoy them more.

There endeth the lesson.

-Chyna

Photo source: copyright Cloud-9 "The Tribe"