I've seen a couple of Mary sue tests for specific fandoms, but they're mostly from ones I haven't even heard about. So I figured, why not make an Oddworld one, or try to? Even though I'm kinda clueless and just like blabbering on about Mary sues?
For those of you who don't know what a Mary sue is, to me, a character is a Mary sue depending on the way the author or suethor portrays and/or writes them. A true Mary sue is made by accident - a person who makes a Mary sue parody character is aware of the characters sueness. The suethor wants to act out some fantasy and/or wants people to love their character. Or their character is just overpowered and defies logic. Most Mary sues are female. Mary sues are generally annoying and unenjoyable to read about, hence people try to avoid reading about them or accidentally creating them.
Typical traits of Mary sues are attractiveness, goodness, power, a bad past, logic defiance and luck. Prepare for a rant.
Mary sues are usually attractive, because that is a good thing. They usually look hot, or cool, or whatever so you'll like them better. But this = logic defiance if they don't even spend time doing their hair, washing their face, exercising or getting plastic surgery. A tough female Mary sue usually doesn't even have butchiness most of the time, because that would be soooo unattractive and not feminine. Or scars on their perfect complexion, unless they're really fancified ones to do with something dramatic.
Mary sues are good natured, because we love good people in real life. Mary sues are so noble, they'll sacrifice their life to save someone, sometimes with the typical sue ending of 'they die tragically and are mourned by all'. Or worse, they are brought back to life. Which is unrealistic and annoying. They're goodies, fight with the good guys and can do no wrong. This is stupid, because everyone, no matter how nice or moral or good, screws up every once in a while and sins. Sometimes a Mary sue's sin is blamed on her tragic past and she/he is instantly forgiven.
Mary sues have power. They have magic abilities, can fight, are telepathic, bladibladibla. This gets annoying and dumb when Mary sue hasn't even trained to be an awesome fighter, doesn't even have noticeable muscles and/or can defeat a baddie in one punch. The third option is the worst, because it makes the story boring when there is no challenge and everything is easy for Mary sue.
The bad past is to gain sympathy from the reader. It might make you cry and feel sorry for the Mary sue, because everyone hates her and is so wrong in hating her when she's such a good person. Or she didn't deserve whatever abuse she got. This trait becomes sueified when Mary sue isn't screwed up enough because of it. Usually this is because said suethor wants the character to look cool, and they wouldn't if they started crying in the middle of the supermarket or had a flashback at a bad time, would they? When an angst past collides with logic defiance, i.e. they hop into bed soon as with the main character, despite being abused by a male in which they probably wouldn't trust men, or don't have any mental disorders or noticeable fears from seeing someone they cared for getting killed, or aren't miserable most of the time, then that character will be judged a Mary sue and have eyes rolled at them by most people who know what one is.
Mary sues defy logic, which is the centre of all their sueness. It makes no sense and is annoying. The suethor makes happen whatever he/she pleases. The normally tough and serious character can fall head over heels in love at first sight with Mary sue, and/or want to bed her soon as despite the fact they usually keep themselves to themselves. Mary sue can beat up some one who’s bigger than them with ease with their skinny little arms. And come back to life by the power of love.
Mary sues are lucky buggers. Typically, Mary sues get paired up with a main character, who falls for them with ease, before later having little sue babies with them, who will have their own little suey adventures. And they win and have a happy happy ending. Unless of course they die. Sue babies tend to fall for other canon character's sue babies.
In RPGs, Mary sues are worse, because they are in your face and you can't escape them. With the traits above, they'll dogde your attacks, win win win, do whatever they please, use telepathy to see whatever attacks are coming or who is evil in OOC... Until they kicked out or learn to be fairer, mostly.
So in short, end rant, Mary sues are annoying. And overly fancified. If you’re doing fanfics, you’ll probably want to avoid making one. I figured I’d put down some ideas for what could be considered suey in Oddworld, i.e., unrealistic, popular and specialized. The following test has 104 questions...I am never counting them all up again...
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MARY SUE TEST
(Answering yes to questions is teh bad....Usually.)
SPECIES
CANON SPECIES
1) Is your character a slig, clakker, or other usually mean species, but nice?
1a) Just because they are?
2) Is your character a gabbit or steef, even though Stranger and Munch are supposed to be the only ones left? (There could be more steefs though)
3) Is your character one of the eusocial species (species with a queen, sligs, glukkons etc), and a female?
3a) But not a queen?
3b) But still fertile?
3c) A pre-queen 'princess'?
3d) And not a promiscuous breeder?
NON CANON SPECIES
4) Is your character a super duper vykker experiment?
4a) A hybrid of Oddworld creatues?
4b) With some super powers added to them?
5) Is your character from some species you made up?
5a) A considerably good species? (Like most or all of the species in it are good, don't enslave others etc)
5b) An unfairly victimized species? (Like 'everyone hunts it, makes it into food or enslaves it' etc.)
PLOT
FUTURE
1) Does your character get paired up with Munch/Stranger/Abe?
1a) And have their babies? (I hereby slap you if its Abe)
PRESENT
2) Does your character not remember their past?
2a) If/when they figure it out, is it angst and dramatic?
2b) Did they suffer abuse in this past? (Doesn't count for regular slave species treatment)
2c) If they were badly abused, do they not have the mental scars to go with it? (Like genophobia if they were sexually abused, etc.)
3) Is your character related to one of the official characters? (Does not count for normal eusocial relations, like Abe and all of the other mudokons. Something more specific like a twin.)
3a) Secretely?
3b) One of the goodies?
PAST
4) If your character has been a slave(eg mudokon), were they treated worse than most slaves?
4a) Beaten harder/suffered worse violent treatment?
4b) Suffered sexual abuse? (Which seems ridiculous in Oddworld to me)
POWERS
MAGIC
1) Is your character some super duper immortal thingy?
2) Can your character use shrykul power, or some other super power?
2a) Do they have the Shrykul power even though they never got the handscars from going through the Paramonia and Scrabania temples?
PHYSICAL
LOOKS
1) If your character is a mudokon, is it a colour other than green?
1a) Something not blue, purply or a typical mudokon colour?
2) If your character is a female that isn't a clakker, outlaw, or other species with boobs, do they have boobs? (coughAgent80085cough)
2a) Are they big boobs or basically supposed to be hot?
RPG SUE
(Is you RPG character...Suey?)
THE CHARACTER
1) Is your character important in the RPG?
1a) Allowed to do whatever they please?
1b) Because you're the boss?
1c) Or just because you said so?
2) Is your character powerful?
2a) Do they win most fights?
2b) All fights?
2c) Even if they're against something like a big bro, and aren't as big and bulky as one? (Unless of course they use their brains or something.)
YOU
3) Have people told you to stop powerplaying or that you powerplay too much?
3a) Did you deliberately ignore this?
3b) Argued that you weren't powerplaying?
3c) Bluntly told them something like 'I don't care, it's my character and I'll do whatever I want!'
3d) Told them something along the lines of 'Screw you, I'll do whatever I want, get lost and stop bothering me!' (May the mods have mercy on you if you said that...)
SPECIES SUE
(Is your made up fanspecies suey?)
1) Is your species related to one of the currently existing ones?
1a) Is it basically bettered than the original species? (i.e., most of the induviduals are nice, the species has more magic or strength, etc)
2) Is the species victimized? (Like 'all of the other species have been sooo mean to it blablabla')
3) Is most or all of the induviduals in the species good?
3a) A good industrialist species?
4) Does it have good technology or magic?
CANON SUENESS
(For official characters in fanfictions)
1) Do you write about one of the official characters in your fic, and not research their personality?
2) If its Stranger/Munch/Abe, do they fall for your character with ease?
2a) Act all soppy or sleazy around them?
3) Did you make up their past?
3a) Is it all angsty?
3b) Was it Stranger with a super duper angst past to explain his antiheroeness? (I'm toteleh guilty of this one)
4) If you are writing about a baddie in the Oddworld series you didn't make up, did you use an angst past to excuse his evilness?
ANTI SUENESS
(Not suey things)
MENTALLY
1) Is your character a slig or other normally mean species, and still mean?
1a) And a complete sicko?
1b) Have they done something so sick, it could be considered unforgivable by some?
1c) Do they never ever change for better and/or and remain evil?
2) Is your character insane?
2a) Insane to the point they endanger themselves, others or can't think normally?
3) Is your character wimpy?
3a) Really wimpy?
3b) Wimpy to the point they don't fight or avoid fights?
3c) Scared of things smaller than them that can't kill them? (Like bolamites.)
4) Is your character dumb?
4a) Very dumb?
4b) Too dumb for their own good?
PHYSICALLY
5) Is your character basically unnatractive?
5a) Just a bit dull or fat or just not overly pretty?
5b) Just plain ugly?
5c) Reeeaaally ugly?
6) Is your character disabled?
6a) Just a little handicap?
6b) A big one?
6c) Something really severe, like complete blindness?
6d) Do they have nothing to make up for it? (eg telepathy to find their way around if they're blind, etc)
7) Is your character honestly weak?
7a) Unable to do some things other people can bcause of it? (Like lifting certain heavy objects, etc.)
7b) Weak to the point its a disability?
8) Is your character an animal? (Like a paramite or scrab, etc)
SUETHORNESS
(Are you...A suethor?)
YOU AND YOUR CHARACTER
1) Do you think everyone will like your character?
1a) Because your character is really original?
1b) Because your character is really pretty?
1c) Because your character is really hot?
1d) Because your character is really super powered?
1e) Because your character is such a good person?
1f) Because they will feel sorry for their angst past?
2) Do you think your character is original?
2a) Because she/he wears a fancy outfit?
2b) With skankyness and/or pretty colours?
YOU AND OTHERS
3) Do you feel insulted when people critisize your character?
3a) If it was proper constructive critism, were you still feeling bitter?
3b) If it was proper constructive critism, did you basically tell them to get stuffed and didn't believe them?
VILLAIN SUE
(Could your bad guy be a sue?)
THE CHARACTER
1) Is your character a powerful baddie?
1a) With magic, or some other powerful force?
1c) Are they mysterious?
PLOT
2) Are they evil because of an angst past?
2a) Are they not really that evil after all?
2b) Will they turn good and join the good guys side?
RESULTS
If you answered yes to most of species 3, looks 1 and possibly more...
MUDOKON-SUE
Don't think your character is original, because she isn't - there are plently of purple skinned female mudokon workers out there.
If you answered yes to rpg suethor 1b and/or 1c, 3 and possibly more...
RPG SUETHOR
Stop and think before you roleplay, because you're probably getting on everyone's nerves. No one likes to roleplay with a perfect character that beats them all the time without giving them a chance to win, its unfair. Try and let your character get hit by an attack, lose when the odds are against them, read the RPG rules and listen to any reasonable complaints from others. Or people will get sick of you and you'll get kicked out of roleplays.
If you answered yes to species 1, maybe 1a and possibly more...
INDUSTRIAL SUE
There are plenty of nice sligs out there, just like female purple mudokon workers. You probably aren't original on this one.
If you answered yes to more than one of the suethor questions...
SUETHOR
If you are one, be careful - Mary sues tend to get most people annoyed. Run your characters through a Mary sue test, study the Maru sue concept, make sure your character is logical and perhaps ask someone how suey your character is.
If you answered yes to species 4 and possibly more...
EXPERIMENT SUE
The plot of 'super duper vykker experiment' has been used before, so watch it with this one. Hybrid creatures are frequent, and if you have more added things like superpowers, then be wary.
If you answered yes to plot 3 and possibly more...
PLOT DEFIANCE SUE
Making a character related to an official character, having them fight the baddies in one of the games or beat the baddies once and for all goes against the plot. Especially if you change the past and make relations. Its innetivable in fanfiction anyway, so don't feel too bad.
If you answered yes to canon sue 2, 2a, 3, and/or 3c for Stranger...
CANON SUE
Stranger is not sleazy and lovey dovey. Munch has 150 gabbiwogs to look after after MO, or is trying to fertilise the eggs, so he probably won't have much free time for love. Abe is infertile and so won't be interested in sex. Remember this when pairing them up with your possible sue. If they act out of character and fall for them with ease, then the chances of your character being a logic defying Mary sue are increased. Those who know the characters real personality will be annoyed. Giving Stranger an angst past makes him more suey and goes against the plot, since his past is probably always going to be a mystery. Remember not to make them act how you want them to act, but how they're supposed to act.
If you answered yes to anti sue 1, a lack of villain sue questions and possibly more anti sue questions...
NOT SUE
Your character, if you answered the above questions honestly, likely isn't a Mary sue. Congratulations. Although theres always the possibility your character is too dull, and if they are a honest bad guy, people won't exactly be cheering for them.
HELP AND ADVICE
Q:
My character can't be a sue! That only happens to all those little 13 year olds, right?
A:
Lies - creating a Mary sue can happen to anyone, even you! It even happened to me! Even those who hate sues can make one - Mary sues happen by accident.
Q:
I got a high score! Man I suck! I'm never doing fanfic again!
A:
Just because you got a high score on a test, doesn't mean you are a terrible suethor that needs to die. Suethors aren't evil for writing a Mary sue, they just...Well, they did a bad fanfic. Even characters who get high scores might not be sues, just try and be realistic.
Q:
How do I know if I made a sue?
A:
Usually, you don't. Taking a test like I did might make you more aware of your character's suey traits. Or you could ask a friend to read it and tell them how suey your character is. Read your fic again and make sure things make sense, like your character has the appropriate emotional scars for the uuber bad experiences they had, and that official characters are in character.
Q:
I think I made a Mary sue...How do I de-sueify my character?
A:
De-sueification is a complicated process, because not much people will be willing to change their character dramatically - it might not feel like the real character anymore, and feel like some other strange character instead. That and you might not know what to change. To try de-suefication, you could take away some of your characters powers that you find unnesasary, add muscles if they're meant to be strong and/or take away dramatic relations to official characters. The best thing you can do however, is edit your fanfic - make the official characters in character, and if they are going to fall for your character, make it happen over time and not instantly. Don't have your character win with ease all the time, make them struggle or fail, or admit to sin and not make up excuses for themselves.
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These are just a bunch of ideas. Feel free to add or debate any.
WARNING:
Just because a character gets a high score on a Mary sue test, doesn't mean they are a Mary sue - it just increases the chances. If you feel bad about a high sue score, I'll be willing to compare your characters with my sueist to make you feel better.
Mary sues
Awesome ideas so far....
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