Author: KA Byrnes

BERTHA RUSSELL, THREE

On the New Money side of the street we have a woman so socially ambitious it’s a wonderment to watch her. Bertha runs her advancement into the hierarchy of New York City’s rich as if it were a business. I’ve never seen a female character written so forcefully and yet respectfully. Usually a woman this brash is the villain.

Does she like nice things? I don’t think so. She likes status. But then she hires an innovative architect and a French chef (something not done at that time). Boldness is her profession, and she has an instinct for it. She has a tactical understanding of style, while choosing something for its beauty is secondary.

Three. Envy eats her alive, yet it won’t stop her. She will achieve what she attempts. This is a mesmerizing person who refuses to lose. I couldn’t stop admiring her.

The Story Enneagram of Mass Effect 1

In 2007 Bioware swung for the fences: our Shepard avatar vs. the villainous Saren, organic life vs. machines, upstart humans vs. an unfathomably old cycle of destruction. These are the themes of the first Mass Effect game.

ONE

Humans are only one sentient species among many. We’re actually a fresh addition to the activity of the galaxy. We’re ambitious, though. Shepard, one of the best humanity has to offer in terms of fighting ability and determination, has a chance to become the first human Spectre, a special forces rank. On a routine mission to show what she can do, Shepard faces an unknown problem.

TWO

The Turian Spectre set to judge Shepard is surprised by another Spectre, Saren, who shoots him in the back. It’s a stark moment. The Geth are a shocking enemy, something humanity has never seen and other races haven’t seen in centuries. They’re minions, though, and Saren is their leader. His presence here is obviously the Trouble that’s resolved at the endgame battle. The Reapers are the overarching villain, but in this story the specific antagonist is Saren.

THREE

This really isn’t a story about humanity fitting into an established galaxy. This is war with the unknown — with history, actually. Shepard interacts with a Prothean Beacon, an artifact, that implants a confusing vision in her consciousness. What does it mean? Why is the rogue Spectre after the same information? Can humanity have a place in how the galaxy answers these questions? 

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AGNES VAN RHIJN, SIX

The Gilded Age has become one of my delights. The series is engaging, the characters are true to themselves, and the costumes are jaw-dropping. Please try it if you haven’t yet.

On the Old Money side of the street we have Agnes. She is so firm, so determined, so confident in her ideas. Her snobbery towards New Money is unmovable. 

Her compassion is very strict, too. She can spot “an adventurer” from a mile, and she’s always correct. For care of her family, she will cut the rogue to the bone. That her sister or her niece might prefer their illusions is something Agnes would disdain and ignore. Right is right, and the truth must be honored.

This is not a Heart Type, lol. This is a One or a Six. Rules are an iron bound box to her. We never see her step out for a stroll or a turn about the park, so probably not a Body Type. Also, she married a horrible man when she was younger in order to protect and support her family. This is a Trooper.

Citadel: End Game

It’s hard to find a more epic end to a game than this one. The fight up the outside of the Citadel tower is exciting, Geth Destroyers and Krogan Warlords everywhere. Meanwhile, the Reaper ship Sovereign makes it inside the Citadel’s arms before they can close and attaches itself to the station. Like a creepy cockroach it suctions onto the point of the Citadel Tower. We must climb the exterior, coming ever closer to its massive wiggling arms.

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XIALING, NULL

The sister has a lot going on as a character, and seems placed to contribute more in further sequels.

She’s self-taught. While Shaun was trained abusively, Xialing was ignored. On the quiet, she watched and learned.

She’s self-made. After leaving home as a teenager she built a fighting arena in Macau that becomes hugely successful. At the end of the movie, she’s taking over her father’s crime business.

It’s actually a bit awkward. She’s brave, strong, smart — a hero — yet no one ever suggests that she wear the Ten Rings. Even she never questions why Shaun gets the power. It’s canon, or it’s a father/son inheritance, or both. Shaun never even offers her the Rings. I mean, yes, that’s the story — abused boy becomes resolved man — but if sister is going to be worthy of power, then we need to see that discussion.

Oh, dear. She’s much more developed than mom and auntie, but is she just an archetype, too? What does she want? What is her arc and what are her goals? She gets a lot of screen time and is integrated into the main plot. She saves them on the skyscraper scaffolding and in the final dragon battle, but her actions could’ve been performed by anybody. Besides being Sister, she brings nothing specific to these moments. Yikes.

Ilos

We sneak through the Mu Relay to stop Saren in his quest for the Conduit. After fighting his Geth we follow him into an ancient Prothean facility. Although the battles are juicy, the main purpose of this mission is for exposition. We encounter a VI, Vigil, who tells us much.

The Reapers spend their down time in Dark Space until a civilization is ripe. Then they activate a mass relay hidden in plain sight on the Citadel — it’s that silly statue that hums in the water feature — and enter the governing heart of the galaxy. From their they control everything and decimate at their leisure.

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