(And the grenade launcher was actually named "Francesca", I feel compelled to note; I still really don't care for that name.)
I actually got it mixed up because I have a character named Francine, funnily enough.
For the main point of the article, I think that Kira's side of thing was also a major factor in why it didn't work for me. Why would she want Trig, Falconi, or Sparrow in her found family, for example?
Good point. Not only do they have no reason to suddenly start liking her, but she has no reason to do the same with them. Other than giving her free shit and doing whatever she wants for no reason, they're jerks to her. Greg even calls her a MONKEY at one point.
What makes matters worse is that it seems she has to spend time (and have a heart-to-heart) with everyone, no matter if they really fit with her.
Yeah, why is she so prepared to sit there and listen to them over-share for no reason? A real person would be annoyed or even creeped out. Worse, she doesn't respond in kind by sharing back. Just as it was with Murtagh pouring his heart out to Nausea, she doesn't react like a human being, and certainly not like someone who's genuinely interested and wants to get to know each other better. Part of why we never learn anything of substance about her and who she is as a person.
Isn't found family supposed to be about choosing who you want to spend your life with, rather than having to get along with everyone equally?
EXACTLY!
Beyond that... it doesn't seem like it's solving a problem Kira has? Yes, she is lonely by the beginning of the second part, but I don't recall her wanting to get more family, and she doesn't seem to care all that much about it, so... I don't know.
She definitely doesn't come across as a sociable person; she hates going to parties, and comes off as very uninterested in her supposed new "friends". Like I said, she doesn't talk to them. Not really. Even her "bantering" with Greg comes off as detached and just going through the motions rather than actually having a bit of fun throwing jokes back at him. The flat, emotionless way Paolini writes all his "human interactions" doesn't help at all, of course.
The last found family story I wrote was specifically about two people who are extremely damaged and also extremely lonely. They bond because as mismatched as they are, they both desperately need a friend. And they're really good for each other.
We don't get anything like that here at all. Kiragon didn't even act as if she was friends with the original "found family" she lost thanks to the parasite going kill-crazy. She thinks about Alanb0t a few times and the rest of them not at all.
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Date: 2025-05-25 05:33 am (UTC)I actually got it mixed up because I have a character named Francine, funnily enough.
Good point. Not only do they have no reason to suddenly start liking her, but she has no reason to do the same with them. Other than giving her free shit and doing whatever she wants for no reason, they're jerks to her. Greg even calls her a MONKEY at one point.
Yeah, why is she so prepared to sit there and listen to them over-share for no reason? A real person would be annoyed or even creeped out. Worse, she doesn't respond in kind by sharing back. Just as it was with Murtagh pouring his heart out to Nausea, she doesn't react like a human being, and certainly not like someone who's genuinely interested and wants to get to know each other better. Part of why we never learn anything of substance about her and who she is as a person.
EXACTLY!
She definitely doesn't come across as a sociable person; she hates going to parties, and comes off as very uninterested in her supposed new "friends". Like I said, she doesn't talk to them. Not really. Even her "bantering" with Greg comes off as detached and just going through the motions rather than actually having a bit of fun throwing jokes back at him. The flat, emotionless way Paolini writes all his "human interactions" doesn't help at all, of course.
The last found family story I wrote was specifically about two people who are extremely damaged and also extremely lonely. They bond because as mismatched as they are, they both desperately need a friend. And they're really good for each other.
We don't get anything like that here at all. Kiragon didn't even act as if she was friends with the original "found family" she lost thanks to the parasite going kill-crazy. She thinks about Alanb0t a few times and the rest of them not at all.