How cool is it though that weāve got a fantasy narrative with a main character who is a mom, motivated to get back to her kid? There are plenty of stories about dads going full badass to protect their family, or get back to their family, or save their family from danger, and now between Nott and Nila, weāve got two moms, very different from eachother, who are in different situations where they had to save their families.Ā
Itās pretty rare to see parents-as-main-characters in general in fantasy adventure-type stories, but especially moms. Generally a mom is a support character, or part of a backstory, and often dead, for that matter. The perspective of a mother isnāt often explored, nor her inner life or complexities beyond what directly relates to her children, the actual main characters. And that isnāt because being a mom is some small thing, it doesnāt lessen a person to be a mom - it is simple territory rarely explored in fiction, and often overlooked or taken for granted.
But with Nila and Nott, we have stories about mothers going on adventures! We see their struggles, unique to them as parents, as mothers, playing out over the course of their journeys. We see their love for their kids as a powerful driving force, and the complex interplay of other emotions associated with that love as they are put through their different trials: rage, heartache, grief, fear, anxiety, hope.Ā
And thereās also so many other facets of their personalities and characters! Nilaās smell bag, her identity as a firbolg, her clan, her feeling that she was rather inferior compared to most of her clan and could only be trusted with growing moss contrasting with the call to adventure she experienced when so much of her clan was kidnapped, including her partner and her son, her lack of experience with society outside of her clan, her spiritual beliefs, her connection to nature.
And Nott! She steals things sometimes for survival, or because something will be helpful, but itās also a compulsion. Her hatred of goblins, her fear of judgement for her appearance, her anxiety and fearfulness. Her alcoholism as an unhealthy coping method for her anxieties and fears, and Iād hazard a guess as a way to push past the heartache of being separate from her family. Her quick temper, her weird habits. Her dislike for being condescended to. Her sense of humor, which she plays off wonderfully with so many of The Mighty Nein, but Jester in particular. Her love of making shit explode, her talent for tinkering and alchemy.
Itās just so cool, in my fine opinion, to have this story unfolding with a long-term character that is a mom, motivated by getting back to her family, with so many other elements and complications in that narrative, and to have a shorter story with Nila saving her family as well.
Having moms, who yes are supportive of the others around them, but also have their own story to tell, and to see mother-child relationships from the perspective of the mothers, is justā¦ā¦really damn cool.Ā
And with Nott especially in such a long form narrative, to see a mom who is a flawed person, because mothers are people, and all people are flawed, although often mothers-as-support-characters are often regulated to wonderful saints who exist only to support their children.Ā
But with Nott, we see those virtues of a loving heart, taking care of the other party members, and also trying to balance the struggle between her goals and getting back to her family, and her growing care for the group. Her fears and anxieties heightening to such an edge that she lashes out at the people closest to her. Her brand of love for Caleb often veering into over-praise and putting others down, and not always being healthy for the two of them. Her aspirations for Caleb growing more powerful so he can change her so she can return to her other family sometimes conflicting with what would be in the groupās best interest, or Calebās best interests. We see her turning to alcohol near-constantly just to muster up the courage to go on adventures.Ā
And weāve seen her make huge sacrifices: killing a manticore baby, taking an attack of opportunity, pushing past her phobia of water. And killing that manticore baby - she knew more than anyone else there how pissed that manticore would be at her, she knew more than anyone else exactly what she was doing and how big of a sacrifice she was making.
āA baby should be with its mother.ā
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