Right, so I fail at updating anything — I need to get into the habit of writing more. Funny how being in a relationship cuts into blogging time.
Today was interesting, for two things: first, I came home to find a present from Beka on my desk: the first issue of the Devil May Cry comic book, which basically retells the first game, with somewhat better dialogue and a bit more backstory. While not sterling writing, by any means, it was nice to get some actual interaction between Sparda and Mundus, and a bit of character development for Dante.
Dante comes off as flippant and driven by turns, and it’s a well done, thoughtful portrayal. The first issue takes us up to the first boss fight of the game, glossing over most of the tedious running around and getting straight to the meat of the story… Though I was sorry to see the scene in which Dante acquires Alastor get cut. Devil Arms are more than cool weapons — they’re living things with their own personalities and desires, and they can be damned picky about who’s wielding them. One of the things I liked most about the original DMC is that, unlike the Devil Arms in the sequels, obtained through defeating demons and taking their power, these aren’t gifts, or things taken by right of conquest. They’re pure demonic power in weapon form, just waiting for someone stupid enough to try and pick them up. When Dante does, he’s obviously in agony as they test him, and only through withstanding the test of pain does he earn the right to use them. And that hits all sorts of fiction-kinks for me. I like living (and sentient) weapons. I like the idea that just because a powerful weapon is there, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s for you. And to see that test, to see Dante’s reactions as he has to fight for every bit of power he gains… That would’ve been lovely.
Still, this isn’t without gleeful moments for me. Dante walking into the castle and being overwhelmed with memories of his father’s fight with Mundus, as well as memories of Vergil and his mother… That alone would be worth the price of admission. And when he actually has to fight to keep his own demonic nature from surfacing? All I can say to that is YES. Strong, capable characters who can destroy anything they come against having to fight to control themselves — and winning — well, that’s a fiction-kink right there. I have a thing for weird power dynamics, and when the dynamic involves two sides of someone’s nature, it’s all the better.
And really, that’s one of the reasons I love Dante so much: he’s an insanely powerful half-demon, son of the demon knight who took on the armies of hell single-handedly and won, and yet it seems like his biggest struggle is against his own demonic nature. For all his swaggering bravado, for all that everything about him is designed to scream BADASS to anyone who’s listening, he’s a great big softy underneath it all, and I’ve always had the feeling that’s a part of himself he fights to keep alive. Yeah, being a sap (even secretly) leads to doing really stupid things now and then, but it’s what makes him different from what he fights, and there’s no way he’d ever allow himself to be as indifferent to others as he pretends to be.
To stop caring is to stop being human. And when he stops being human, he becomes one of them, one of the creatures that killed his mother and destroyed his life. (This is also why his rivalry with Vergil is as bitter as it is — Vergil’s everything Dante’s most afraid of becoming, with his contempt for humanity, and how he whole-heartedly embraces all things demonic.)
Brad Mick’s writing brings out parts of the characters that I’d always suspected were there, but were only hinted at in the games. And Pat Lee’s art more than does Dante justice… Though somehow Trish just ends up looking weird, as her proportions seem slightly off more often than not. Can’t win ‘em all, I guess. Back to the positive, major props for showing Sparda as the Big Damn Demon I always suspected he was, when seen with Mundus for comparison. (There are two instances in which “Sparda” appears roughly human-sized in the games — the first is the Legendary Dark Knight costume for Dante, which lets you appear to play as Sparda — but really, animating a lot of additional mass would be annoying when it’s just a bonus costume. The other instance is Arkham taking on Sparda’s form as he takes his power — and since it’s not really Sparda, we have no idea if that’s an accurate depiction, size-wise, or if Arkham just shapeshifted without considering scale. Personally, I think Sparda was powerful enough to be whatever damn size he wanted to be.)
All in all, it was a wonderful (and completely unexpected!) gift, and I’m absolutely delighted with it. Yeah, it’s cheesy at times, but that’s the beauty of a character like Dante: he’s a nigh-invincible badass in a longcoat. He knows damn well he’s a huge dork, but when he do things like toss you into the air with his sword and then keep you aloft on a cushion of bullets, are you really going to call him on it?
