I love stories and storytelling. Film, television, theatre, literature and music all fill our lives with warmth and thrills. Why are so engrossed in great stories? What makes us feel so bonded to a tale or two? Character.
Without great characters, there is no great story. And not just the lead characters. All of the characters are important, and it can be surprising by which ones leave lasting impressions.
More often than not, a great villain or anti-hero tugs at our hearts and we find the connection through them. So let's talk about some unforgettable voices in story...
Redditor u/tonaleo wants to chat about the characters from the arts that we feel connected to and why, by asking:
What fictional character do you feel bad for?
Can you imagine "The Wizard of Oz" without the witch? Or Toto? I always felt bonded with them first. I'm back and forth with Dorothy Gale.
Work Woes
This Too Shall Pass Advice GIF
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"Benson from Regular Show. Poor dude was just trying to do his job."
Sunk
"That one guy from Titanic. You know, propeller guy."
"I watched titanic as a kid when it came out on VHS with my cousins, we were all teary eyed until that moment and I laughed my butt off and my whole family looked at me like I was a psychopath."
Creature Discomfort
"The Creature from Frankenstein. All he needed was a little guidance and a little caring, but all Frankenstein ever did for him was turn him away (the coward). Well that and Guts. Geeze, did the dude lead a hard life."
"Yeah that book was awesome but Victor made no sense. Like, how ya gonna freak out at the sight of your creation when you are the one who made it look like that? He's always sh*tting on the creature for being so hideous and acts surprised about it. Didn't you spend months staring at the damn thing as you cobbled it together from dead body parts? What were you expecting, George Clooney?"
Poor kid...
"Barb from Stranger Things. They just moved her car to a bus stop and told everyone she ran away, and everyone just accepted it no questions asked (except for Nancy, but even she didn't seem too upset). Poor kid."
"Nancy was devastated, though. The second season revolves around her PTSD surrounding the fallout of death she blamed herself for."
Chewy Pain
star wars GIF
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"Obviously, Chewbacca. His best friend, road dog, partner in crime and in battle, Han Solo was murdered by his tormented flesh and blood right before Chewies eyes. I cried. Chewie cried. Kylo cried. Han didn't cry. He died."
I think about horror movies in this light sometimes. Many of the victims who get offed along the way can be remembered. I'm still traumatized by some.
Blue
walt disney GIF
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"Eeyore from Winnie Pooh. He tries so hard being a part of the others while at the other side he doesn't believe in his self."
Classics
"Zelda and Link from breath of the wild those guys just lost everything close to them."
"I feel bad for Mipha too. Poor girl was in love with Link since they were children, but she's too nervous to confess. Right when she builds up the courage to admit it, Ganon shows up and kills everyone. And her ghost had to hang out inside that giant robot elephant for a century not knowing what happened to him."
Be our guest...
"All the servers and butlers in Beauty and the Beast. THE HECK DID THEY DO WRONG YOU WEIRD OLD HOT CURSE LADY?"
The Prince who wouldn't let her in could hardly be blamed either. He was a child and was probably taught about "stranger danger" and probably thought he was doing the right thing by not letting in a complete stranger. It's unclear why he would personally answer the door himself anyway given the impressive number of servants and staff he has."
Oh Cappy
"Probably Captain Rex. He spent three years fighting for the wrong side without even knowing until it was too late, then all his brothers turned on him, and his one friend through it all was Ahsoka, who he had to say goodbye to, not knowing Anakin or Obi-Wan's fate, but knowing that all of his clone friends had turned evil, or died."
'one who got away'
Season 9 Fighting GIF by Friends
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"David (Hank Azaria) from friends. Built up as phoebes 'one who got away' for almost all of the show, only to get awkwardly dumped while proposing to her. After which he kind of just walks away."
"There's a lot of things in the last season I don't like. It's like they tried to wrap everything up so fast they didn't stop to think if they were good ideas or not."
Poor Kid
"Helga from Hey Arnold. The episode focusing on her mother really hit hard for me back then."
"Helga's therapy episode made me cry when I was a little kid. Being so neglected as a five-year-old that you walk yourself to preschool in a dark ghetto, getting attacked by dogs and covered in rain, is such a traumatic thing for anyone to go through. Meanwhile, your narcissistic father and alcoholic mother are at your house, drowning the other child in love and attention while they can't even be f*cked to remember your name. Her parents should have been in jail tbh. Poor Helga."
That's quite a list. Poor Eeyore. And how lucky was Pheobe? Too have Hank Azaria AND Paul Rudd fighting over you? Check please!
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The dogs owner shared the video along with a post asking professionals to shed some light on why he does what he does.
Owner-obliviousness as they gushed about how adorable it was made the awkward even better.
The owner explained the Frenchie often makes aggressive eye contact and licks his lips while he "plays air guitar"—which is what the family calls it—and how cute & funny they all find the behavior.
GiphyThe video was the dog, casually chilling, using his paw to rub the tip of his penis while staring awkwardly at the camera and licking his lips like a pup possessed.
Three hundred and fifteen laugh-reacts—at the time that I saw it—and only three comments:
1. a vet explaining that the behavior showed in the video was the dog masturbating while making direct eye contact
2. the owner giving a simple "thank you" and
3. the admins of the group closing the comments.
So, why am I sharing this with you?
Because Reddit user Drakmamman asked:
"Dog owners of reddit, what the dog doin?"
... and so now you get this whole article just so I had an excuse to tell y'all about a furiously fapping Frenchie, 'cause somebody else needed to know about him.
I cackled for a good 20 minutes imagining the family getting all giddy about their dog "playing air guitar"—making the little air guitar meedly squeedly noises while he played, maybe even playing along thinking they're enjoying a fun little game—but they're really just been giving a hair metal soundtrack to their dogs stroke sesh.
Something tells me now the owner knows what "air guitar" really is, they're not likely to rush and tell Reddit all about how they've been gathering as a family to watch cause it's just so cute.
That's what I'm here for.
Anyway, here's the stuff other people's dogs are up to. It's not fapping—or if it is, the owners aren't telling Reddit.
Partner Preference
Giphy"Wife just came home with the baby. Dog is acting like she's been abandoned for years running up and down, barking and jumping on everything."
"They'd only been out an hour and I was with her the whole time." - Single_Goose7015
"My dog does this too when my wife comes home. Like what am I, chopped liver?" - jackof47trades
"I feel your pain. My dog started howling mournfully when my partner went back to work last week… I was right there!" - TreatOutside
"Staring at the door waiting for the only human he cares about to come home (obviously not me)" - SnarkyRedhead
Herding Cats
Giphy"Probably trying to herd the cats."
"He's a border collie mix who's afraid of goats and sheep, but even after six years of living with them he still thinks he can control where the cats go."
"He's a good boy, he's very persistent, but not terribly bright sometimes." - TokesNotHigh
"After 8 years our border collie still herds the cats, and the vacuum." - psychologicaluse28
"Big heart, small brain. I have one of those dogs too. They are the sweetest." - Technobucket
Wretched Existence
Giphy"She has flung herself flat across the bed and is playing dead, quiet except for the occasional pitiful whine. Every now and then she lifts her head up and fixes a desperate look upon me, silently begging for release from her wretched existence."
"She's a bit overdramatic about having to wear a cone. The issue is an abrasion on a toe that she won't stop licking, which is making it worse."
"I've been alternating between bandaging it and having her wear a cone. She's been consistently a drama queen." - halfinboxes
One Hour
Giphy"Staring at me because their dinner time is in one hour and they need to start letting me know that, in an hour, they need to eat...in an hour, so I better not forget...cuz they're hungry, which is why they're staring at me...and it's almost dinner time."
"Just one more hour, And they want to make sure I don't forget. Because maybe I will."
"So, they need to remind me. By staring at me. Every day. One hour before dinner." - MotherOfFred
A Little "Light" Exercise
Giphy"Mine loves light reflected off watches or phones. And loves lasers."
"It's sunny and he sees light on the wall so he is bothering me to use my watch or phone so he can chase the light. I've spent the last hour doing it."
"I even got him a cat laser toy that's automatic for him and he runs himself tired as all hell with it. But he is STILL asking for it."
"Used the laser toy also too, so he is panting dripping tongue and still wants to play more..." - boomgoon
Vicious Predators
Giphy"Last night my dogs chased down and killed a rabbit in the backyard. They are usually so gentle; this was weird and unexpected."
"I watched the whole thing helpless because it was so fast. The rabbit screamed, it was insane."
"Now, I'm watching them sleep on my couch and can't help but think they just murdered someone."
"They are just vicious predators, right here, in my house. On my couch."
"But they snuggly as f*ck. This trips me out." - Atheist_Redditor
A Problematic Princess
Giphy"We have two chihuahuas. One is a 15 year old (quite appropriately) named Princess and one is a one year old named Charlie."
"Both have their own dog beds on the couch since they are spoiled."
"When Princess is feeling particularly moody or like asserting her dominance, she will drag Charlie's bed into her bed and lay on top of BOTH of them and snarl at him if he comes close to her personal space bubble/bed mountain."
"And when we tell her she can't have both beds and put his bed back to the side, she just glares at us. Lol." - mslm90
Shoe-nanigans
Giphy"She's currently in her cage resting after her great adventure."
"She managed to get upstairs and grab a hold of one of my shoes. Not just any old shoe, but one of the shoes I am planning to wear this weekend for my wedding."
"After running around, she dropped the shoe to chew on a shirt - at which point she was cornered, and then brought downstairs."
"Pup and shoe are both unharmed and doing well. My nerves, not so much." - still_interesting23
So ... what's YOUR dog been up to lately?
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