Your favourite character and why?

[Azerane]

What are your favourite character in the book/movie/series and why? What makes that character special?

For me, my favourite character would have to be BigWig. He's straighforward yet humorous, and even though he's busy bossing everyone around, you can't help but love him. Plus he has that crazy tuft of hair.

[toki]

I love that...really camp bunny XD I love his peoms and charming, yet obviously disturbed and creepy personality!

Also Hyzenthlay! She's so beautiful and seems quietly strong. Not afraid to voice her opinion, but knows when to keep her mouth shut.

Lastly Blackavar. He reminds me a lot of Nuka and I think his last attempt was pathetically realistic. I hate it when weak characters suddenly become strong. Sucks that he died, but atleast he kept it real!

[Azerane]

I agree with you in regards to Blackavar, great character, seemingly weak but still strong to fight for what he believes in and to defend his right, even if it did mean his end (which was sad!).

[Blackavar]

I stand by the book's interpretation of what happened to Blackavar. Makes me less sad!

[Azerane]

I agree, plus I think his character is explored more in the book, which is great!

[Blackavar]

Interestingly, his character is very different in the TV series again. He does have quite a presence in the series though, which I like.

[sunny]

I agree. I like him as well.

This, though:

The council were merciful!

It makes me cringe. It certainly isn't true. So why did he say that?

One thing I learned: Never suck up to tyrants. He should have stood against them. Like this:

The council were NOT merciful!

Hopefully, you all understand what I mean.

[Azerane]

In Blackavar's circumstances, his reason for saying that the council were merciful is simply because he had to. After being attacked like that, he was likely too weak to fight back, and 'the council were merciful' would have been the councils words, as a way to implant fear and respect out of the other warren members. I don't think he was sucking up, I more think it was out of fear and a desire to not have himself ripped to shreds again.

[sunny]

It still makes me cringe. I pity those who are mistreated/maltreated.

[Blackavar]

What I found interesting in comparing the character of Blackavar between the film and the book is: the film portrays him as a much more rebellious character, and far more defiant and angry. Where as in the book he comes across as more gentle, shy and ashamed.

Did anybody else feel the same way?

[Azerane]

I understand what you're saying. I think because the Efrafans are all conditioned to believe/act certain ways, and if they thought or said something that someone with more power thought to be wrong, it was immediately forgotten. In the book, on their journey home from Efrafa, Blackavar tells them not to stop in a certain spot, because there was bound to be a fox. Either Hazel or Bigwig tells him they need to rest anyway. A short time later when one of the rabbits is taken by a fox, and they mention to Blackavar that they should have listened to him, he has either legitimately forgotten (due to conditioning of his mind to forget such things) or he is pretending to due to the fact that in Efrafa, what the Owsla etc say, goes.

In either case, he refuses to accept any recognition for the fact and it seems that although he has his wits about him, I think he feels ashamed that he gave up on trying to escape Efrafa, that he lost the will to after they ripped his ears etc. I will have to review that a bit more once I get to Blackavar in the book (almost there), but I will certainly keep it in mind as I read.

[Tima]

I have different favourites for different interpretations of the story and I really struggle picking just one; I just like the whole cast as a big entity. Also, I notice the thread is asking about the movie version, but I kinda want to list my favourites from all the incarnations for comparison.

The book:

-Kehaar. The clumsy way in which he speaks might fool people (and it's probably the reason why he became a bit of a comic relief in the animated incarnations), but this bird is clever, competent, and has seen a lot in his life. He doesn't have the limitations that rabbits have, and he's much more aware of the world than the bunnies are. I love the bond that develops between Kehaar and the rabbits. Kehaar could just fly away after he's healed, but he doesn't. He either has a strong sense of duty about doing back a favor for the rabbits, or he just plain and simply cares for the rabbits and wants to help them like a friend would. And judging by the fact that the gull does return back to the rabbits even after all their doe problems are solved, it seems it really is friendship. And as for Bigwig and Kehaar, they certainly are friends and I find their relationship heartwarming.

-Blackavar. First we meet him as a pitiful victim of abuse, but once we get to know him, it turns out that he's a capable rabbit and a great addition to the Watership Down rabbits. He seems like a very sympathetic and nice guy to me; the way he tried to help out the unhappy does, and the way Hazel's gang wins his respect and so he gives them everything he's got. I saw the movie first, and I was so happy to find out that he didn't die in the book and in fact, got some additional depth to his character there.

-Bluebell. He always has something funny and weird to say, and I love his quirky lapine humor. Kinda feel sorry for him too, though; Hazel always snarks at him and keeps getting impatient with his jokes :p

-Holly. A no-nonsense owsla officer who could challenge Hazel for leadership and win if he wanted to, except he's loyal to his chief rabbit and would never even think of doing such a thing. Even though he came into the group late and the discovery of Hazel being the leader was a surprise to him, Holly had no plans to undermine Hazel's authority, and gave Hazel his respect pretty much from the start.

-Strawberry. He has to struggle so hard to prove his worth, but he does eventually succeed in gaining the other rabbits' approval.


The movie:

-Bigwig. The Efrafan rescue operation and the end fight with Woundwort show what a badass Bigwig is. When I first saw the movie, I kinda thought that Bigwig rather than Hazel was the true protagonist of the story.

-Hyzenthlay. I just really like her character design. (okay, all Efrafan does look like her, but still)


The series:

-Campion. Because he is so awesome. Kind of like book!Holly; a strict owsla officer who's loyal to his warren. Unfortunately, Campion's chief rabbit is a tyrant. Even more unfortunately, series!Campion is an honorable rabbit with a kind heart. Therefore, he has a big dilemma to decide about when it comes to his allegiances.

-Vervain. He's a nasty bully and a villain and everything, but I find him really entertaining in the third season. Also, he seems to have some short moments of doubt about being such a moustache-twirling villain, and I find these little moments intriguing.

-Hawkbit. Had all the time amusing, snarky things to say.

-Hickory. Because he was voiced by Kiefer Sutherland!

-Spartina. Fun accent. Also, I like her character development and how she ends up.

-Aspen. I wish "The Aspen & Vervain Show" had kept going on for more than like two minutes, it seemed like it had potential for fun.

[Blackavar]

I really love Hawkbit from the series too. At first I thought he was a bit of a spoilt sport, but now find him very hilarious!

[Azerane]

The reason the thread was asking about the movie version, is that I originally had different forums for the book, the movie and the series, but decided that so many discussions were relevant to all three that I merged them. I was going to change my first post but obviously neglected to.

Your post simply reminds me how hard it is to choose a favourite character as so many of them are appealing. I myself am really fond of the Dandelion and Blackberry in the book, however they don't get nearly as much attention and development as I would like, they're more background characters with a small part to play. Bigwig is still one of my favourite characters in the book as well as the movie. He has a humorous side that I love seeing and combined with his short temper, but he becomes fiercly loyal to Hazel, which I think is wonderful.

Strawberry also becomes very loyal, and I admire his determination to fit in with Hazel's band and to do the best he can to show that he's a respectable rabbit. His work on the honeycomb really shows how dedicated he is to making it work.

In terms of Keehar, your description is very right regarding the fact that he simply becomes comic relief in the movie. His character in the movie doesn't appeal to me all that much, however in the book he has a lot more depth and despite the broken language, you can tell that he does know a lot and respects the rabbits for what they've done for him.

What was the "Aspen and Vervain show"?

[Tima]

Jun 17, 2011 10:51:04 GMT 9.5 Blackavar said:

I really love Hawkbit from the series too. At first I thought he was a bit of a spoilt sport, but now find him very hilarious!

I remember not caring too much for him initially either, but then he grew on me :) I think the site "Thank U Stars" had some influence too: www.thankustars.co.uk/
As I was watching the series, I kept reading that site's analysis on each episode. While reading their comments on the episodes, I think I might've accidentally assimilated their fondness of Hawkbit and Vervain :p

Jun 17, 2011 10:56:07 GMT 9.5 Azerane said:

The reason the thread was asking about the movie version, is that I originally had different forums for the book, the movie and the series, but decided that so many discussions were relevant to all three that I merged them. I was going to change my first post but obviously neglected to.

Ah allright, cool :)

Bigwig is still one of my favourite characters in the book as well as the movie. He has a humorous side that I love seeing and combined with his short temper, but he becomes fiercly loyal to Hazel, which I think is wonderful.

Yeah, that's pretty awesome, and Bigwig is an awesome character; he gets some really great moments towards the end of the book. Even if he's stubborn and has a temper problem, he manages to show a lot of wit and cunning in the way he tricks Efrafans, and his final fight against Woundwort is so darn kickass too. And I like how he has this gruff exterior yet still has compassion for the despair of the Efrafan does and Blackavar's situation. It's particularly touching how Bigwig decides that he simply _must_ get Blackavar out of Efrafa and he cannot compromise on that.

In the beginning of the book there seems to be a slight power struggle over who has the final word in the rabbit group, Hazel or Bigwig. Slowly but surely the definite leader ends up being Hazel. Once it's become obvious that Hazel's the one who leads, I like that Bigwig is completely alright with that. In fact, in moments of conflict and grumbling, Bigwig often becomes the one who stands by Hazel and encourages (or sometimes bullies :p) the other rabbits into obeying Hazel's command.

I like that Hazel just isn't a fighter, warrior or a soldier like Bigwig, Silver or Holly, but he attempts to lead his rabbits as fairly as he can, and thus he manages to earn the complete loyalty and trust of his warren; they would follow him to the ends of the earth. It's the great thing about Hazel. He's not the strongest rabbit ever and then he even gets an injury that causes him to limp, but the warren just respects him too much for the way he has lead them, and they would not challenge his authority.

A major storytelling element in Watership Down that I'm really fond of are the concepts of loyalty and devoted friendship being used everywhere. Hazel inspires loyalty all around him, he even manages to create interspecies friendships that become very valuable to the rabbits. Woundwort definitely has loyal followers like Hazel, but he's earned his followers with fear and intimidation rather than by gaining their trust and respect. The way he leads Efrafa asks questions about who should you be loyal to, your chief rabbit or your warren (which is what the series digs in a bit further). Then there's El-ahrairah and Rabscuttle who are mischievous towards everyone else but extremely loyal towards one another.

I find loyalty an admirable trait. One thing I really disliked about "Pirates of the Caribbean" was that all the movies were full of backstabbing traitors and absolutely nobody showed any kind of loyalty to anyone except their own selfish interests. But as for Watership Down, loyalty is everywhere, often intertwined with strong bonds of friendship, and characters will not abandon the other members of their warren. Hazel will stick by Pipkin at the river even if he's a small rabbit whose loss wouldn't be that bad; Kehaar will come back to the rabbits in spite of being completely healed and ready to go to Big Water; everyone will choose to defend the warren at the risk of almost certain death rather than escape when the Efrafans attack.

What was the "Aspen and Vervain show"?

In the Watership Down TV series, we encounter in third season a big Efrafan rabbit called Aspen. For a moment it looks like we'll be watching a hilarious "odd couple" kind of thing going on with Aspen and Vervain as they are forced to team up... except then things happen and Aspen won't be seen ever again.
Aspen and Vervain had fun character dynamics together, and I just keep wishing Aspen's character had been used a little more.