Because the term Mary Sue is coined from a character and does not have an actual definition, there are some disagreements in the traits of a Mary Sue. After having looked up a bunch, here’s a list of traits a Mary Sue has and we’ll see is Sylvanas fits the bill.
The personality of a Mary Sue, if she has one, is not nearly as important as how other characters react to it. Other characters will be drawn to her and (for some reason) prefer her company over that of anyone else, all of her ideas are brilliant and all of her jokes are funny.
I personally would say this is not a trait of Sylvanas. She is roundly disliked by many in the horde and all of the alliance.
If another character critisizes The Mary Sue, the author will usually have written that in for the sole purpose of making that character look bad.
I would say this is a trait of Sylvanas. Everyone in the horde who disagrees with her is immediately a traitor or told to go die.
Her “Major Flaws” will be stubbornness and a bad temper. These will only ever help her, never hurt her – because she’s always right, so whatever cause she dedicates herself to with such stubbornness will be a good cause, and whoever she loses her temper with will deserve it.
I think we can say this is overwhelmingly Sylvanas. The second a horde character disagrees with her we see stubborness and/or bad temper. She also believes her cause to have everyone serve death is a good cause.
Incorruptible. In fact, unaware of the possibility of temptation.
Not a trait of Sylvanas.
Inexplicable and/or poorly defined abilities in general, especially if they play no factor in the plot after their introduction and are only there to make the character seem even more awesome.
This one is a bit tougher. Sylvanas definitely has inexplicable or poorly defined power but those powers definitely play into the plot. But at the same time, all these new powers seem to just be there to make her awesome.
Regardless of what skill level the canon characters have established, she might just simply be better than them, often in ways that do not make sense.
See Shadowlands trailer for obvious confirmation.
I think with these examples we can see that she shares some traits that a Mary Sue character would have but not others. I personally think up to wrath she was a very interesting character. Then the writers took her down this rabbit hole where she overcomes every single obstacle with relative ease. And I’m pretty sure thats why a lot of the WoW fanbase is sick of her.
What do you guys think, Mary Sue? Villain Sue? Interesting character?
She functionally solo’d Teldrassil after her miraculously spun plot to split Alliance forces magically worked, then after the expansion that happened in she solo’d the actual Lich King with background power that had to be addition retconned in to prevent a backlash.
This isn’t even a question. The answer is yes if you aren’t a body pillow patron.
Can people like her? Sure. Just don’t lie to yourself about what she is. She’s a hot topic cringe tier 2008 mary sue from myspace hell.
Her writing is barely better than “Ebony Dark’ness Dementia Raven Way”. Google it.
If you actually started in 2011 like your profile suggests you’d know Mary sue has been a hot button discourse since Thrall in Cataclysm.
Welcome to the forums.
I think people are incapable of thinking for themselves which is why they spew whatever popular word or phrase these forums make up from week to week to justify their feelings
Oh I’ve seen it from time to time, but this week it’s every other post saying the same repetitive garbage. We get it, some are mad and can’t figure out why so they latch onto others ideas and phrases to justify their feelings
Until next week when the new group of people who are mad because they want to be think of a new topic that will also be mimicked. The way of the forums
Just feels like she’s a character a kid would create playing pretend.
“Uh no I can actually fly and uh dodge anything, oh and raise the dead, and like shoot energy balls, yeah and like surround anyone in chains and stop them, etc.”
Sylvanas has been written as a Mary Sue this expansion, yes - it’s a sad devolution of one of Blizzard’s best characters since 2003.
Her triumphs are overwritten, her defeats are written in such a way that it seems like she planned on it, calculated it… and she has inexplicable power that seems to scale based on whatever she needs to do?
Needs to beat Saurfang - check.
Needs to take out the Lich King and his entire army single-handedly - check.
Needs to rip an artifact in half with her bare hands and tear open the walls between dimensions - even a feat Sargeas himself was incapable of doing - check.
If that’s not being written like a Mary Sue, dont know what is.
No. You’re hyperbolic assumption means zero since you gave no counter-argument as to how she isn’t a Mary Sue.
In fact, the ones defending her just reinforce the fact she is:
"It’s clear she’s getting her power from “somewhere!”
“It’s part of her 5 expansion plan!!”
“Something, something vague whispers and voices explain everything!!!”
Mary Sue characters are highly defined.
Superheroes are good examples of Mary Sue characters. This is why they keep “retelling” the story that made them into what they are.
It’s to feign character depth.
All Batman movies keep bringing up his parents death.
All Spider-Man movies keep bringing up dead Uncle Ben.
All Sylvanas does is keep bringing up Arthas but now that he is gone, so is her story.
Without those back stories those characters are hollow because they became to dependent on them.
Lore has been dumbed down because the people that have power and control over these stories are irrational, illogical and part of this social media, superficial nonsense generation.
I mean the OP clearly laid out the definition of a Mary Sue and demonstrated several ways that Sylvanas doesn’t meet them. That doesn’t mean she’s well-written, it just means she doesn’t meet the criteria for this one particular buzzword.
I think Sylvanas is still doing what she believes is right. I think that she sees everyone on Azeroth as blind slaves unaware of the real danger. Something about the past 2 cinematics was leading me this way. I think she will end up opening everyone’s eyes in Shadowlands xpac.
Oh my god Hagustus sthu, I’ve seen you in two threads now say “ITs the tree” you have never provided an actual argument and when you tried they immediately shot you down and you never responded. Cause you know you were wrong.
Not saying she wont be written to have some unseen motive. But what you described about seeing everyone as blind slaves to the real danger sounds A LOT like Sargeras.
