My Little Pony: The Next Generation

Now if there’s anything you loved from a good show, it was probably the characters. So, naturally, I plan to make likable, relatable, three dimensional characters. Easier said then done.

Well let’s take this one step at a time, first, what makes a character likable?

Well for me it’s always gone down to one basic principle: Is the character someone you want to be, or be with?

If you think back to your childhoods, or even recently, you’ll probably remember seeing a character in a Videogame, or a TV show, or read about one in a book and thought, “Man, wouldn’t it be cool to be THAT guy/girl/thing?!”

For most of you this is probably the case, and it’s not surprising. Who wouldn’t want to be Superman and fly around, have super strength, and score hot women? Who wouldn’t want to be Indiana Jones and go on awesome adventures, find treasure…... and score hot women?

Basically, when you give your characters interesting and fun lives and abilities that are so much so that it makes people want to be that character, that usually means they’re likable. But then again, there’s also characters who are a different kind of likable.

Take for instance, Charlie Brown, from The Peanuts. Now I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t be too happy if all my life consisted of was being called a blockhead every time I turned the corner. But the fact that Charlie Brown endures it all, and keeps trying things even after multiple attempts the resulted in utter failure, makes him a likable character. So when you give your character admirable personalities and traits, it also makes them likable, even though they may not be all that strong or powerful. You may not want to BE him, but you do appreciate him. This also ties in with part 2 of the principal: “is the character someone you want to be WITH?”

As previously mentioned, sometimes we don’t want to BE a character for certain reasons, but we DO want to be WITH them. Going back to The Peanuts, I don’t know a lot of people who would want to BE Snoopy, but I sure do know a lot of people who want to be WITH Snoopy, who is just as likable as Charlie Brown and the rest of The Peanuts Gang.

This is also the case for characters like Pikachu and Scooby Doo, we want them as friends or pets, but not to be inside them. (no, not THAT kind of inside, get your mind out of the gutter)

Okay, now let’s move onto what makes a character relatable.

There’s not really any sort of principle to this one, as far as I know of. You just need to make sure that your character, human or not, has human emotions. What do I mean by this?

Well, let’s take a look at Gromit from Wallace & Gromit. Even though he’s a dog and he can’t speak, he still has human like emotions that us humans have on a day to day basis.

For example: in The Wrong Trousers, when the penguin (AKA Feathers McGraw) takes over Gromit’s room and pretty much ends up replacing him (doing things that Gromit would do like getting the newspaper and helping Wallace out with certain things) we see Gromit display emotions of sadness, anger, and jealousy.

Not only can we relate with him with the emotions he has, but we can also relate to him with the situations he’s put in.

Think about it, a lot of us have probably had a friend who met someone new and started hanging out with them more and more and almost completely forgetting about you. There’s even some cases where a friend forgets about another all together, sometimes making it known that they don’t want be friends anymore.

And even though the situation in the example of Wrong Trousers might not be EXACTLY like the scenarios I just talked about, we still know the feeling of being ignored by a friend or a loved one because they’re too busy hanging out with someone else.

And we typically become sad, angry, and/or jealous when it happens, just like Gromit.

Another thing that makes characters relatable is how they act. This includes their interests, their habits, how they deal with certain things etc.

I’m going to use Twilight Sparkle as an example this time. Twilight, who likes to read, learn, study, can sometimes be a perfectionist, and sometimes has trouble being social (at least in the beginning she was) is a lot like my sister who shares similar qualities with her.

And THAT’S what makes good relatable characters, good relatable characters, it’s the fact that when a character has human emotions, situations, and qualities that cause people to see themselves or someone they know in the character.

That way they can connect with them and have a closer relationship with the character. Not only making them relatable, but once again, likable.

Alright, it’s time for the last step on our list, making your character three dimensional.

And no, I don’t mean three dimensional as in a 3D model, I mean three dimensional as in a character who is more complex than a cliché stereotype. Meaning it’s a character that feels more real, more “dimensional” if you will.

One thing I find that helps when making characters more three dimensional is that you should put some of YOU into the character. (again, not THAT kind of in)

The reason why it helps to do this is because no one knows YOU better then YOU. And the more developed and believable personalities, qualities, and traits you give your character, the more three dimensional and real it will be.

One thing to keep in mind, is that a repeating catchphrase, laugh, or any sort of repeated action does NOT, and I repeat, NOT make a fully three dimensional character. It’s okay to give them a catchphrase or some other repeating gimmick if they have more of a character than just that gimmick.

In other words: saying “Well excuse me princess” 100 times does NOT make you a developed character (or ANYTHING ELSE besides annoying) but if you ARE a more developed character than saying “good grief” or “cowlabunga” every once in a while is fine. (If you catch my drift)

Another thing worth mentioning is don’t make your character just have ONE emotion. If you’re human, which you most likely are, you know that you’re not always happy or sad all the time. Some days you’re happy, others you’re sad, sometimes it’s both.

You can of course still give them an emotion they’re most known for like Pinkie Pie who’s known for always being happy, or Fluttershy who’s known for always being sweet and shy. But then again, those characters also had moments when they didn't act like their usual selves (i.e. Party for One) making them, of course, more three dimensional.

And finally, make sure you give your character flaws. The reason why is because when you make your character perfect, they also become bland, and un-relatable.

Take Sonic the Hedgehog for example: even though he is very skilled and has a good heart, there were moments when he would make a mistake or break a promise. (at least in the shows and comics)

This wasn't because he was bad, it was just because he had a moment of wrongdoing, because he isn't perfect, like human beings.

Making him not only just three dimensional, but also relatable, and likable. Ladies and gentleman, we have gone full circle! Boo-Yah!