Need Some Help with Miraculous Rewrite
Ok, so, spoilers for the future Miraculous rewrite, though probably not that surprising giving my preference and what I've talked about before. And I don't think it's going to spoil that much of the rewrite, so I think it's going to be ok for me to roll out this post and get some help.
Thinking on the Miraculous Rewrite, working on the timeline and future ideas, one thing I am torn on is on the secondary lead.
Probably unsurprisingly, it's going to be kwami swaps. There will be a few canon matches that do happen, either as they work or narrative wise need to stay, but a majority will be Miraculous with different people.
Marinette for sure will have the Cat. Partly because her and Plagg are going to be so fun to write, and it's one of my favorite kwami swaps for her; but mostly I do think it's going to offer her the most growth and it's going to be different to explore the different guidance Plagg can offer Marinette and how they work off each other. Even more so as, Plagg is THE foil to Marinette in terms of who he is, and both can play a part in how either grow.
Now the issue I've been struggling with is who is the Ladybug going to go to.
For this, working off Emilie and Amelie, Felix and Adrien are twin brothers, with Felix being older of the two, and is going to primarily work off his PV self (and how I perceived him). Adrien in turn will primarily work off his s1 characterization (that want for friends and being a little more sociable, a willingness to openly rebel and resist against his father, and being torn between what's right vs what he wants). Also neither of them (or Kagami) are sentimonsters. There are no feather babies here.
Now, my struggle is which Agreste should get the Ladybug, as both have their own pros and cons.
Felix would work off his old PV set up, from reluctant to be a hero to coming to embrace the role. And you got someone who's skeptical and pessimistic paired with a kwami who is optimistic and bubbly. Which can set up Tikki to be Felix's primary foil, and both can grow in how they work off each other. Potential cons, it would be a more clashing pair, which can have some comedic potential, but I can also see a lot of tension. And hero partnership wise, it won't be an immediate, easy click. It will become a solid partnership and an effective team, it's just going to have a rougher start with Felix's reluctance to be there, and Marinette will pick up on that quiet frustration even if he hides it. I also will say, I am going to explore that bad luck curse concept, only it's from Tikki forcing a spiteful Felix to get out there. So this is going to be a tenser start with a more flawed lead.
Adrien I would work off what I thought his initial arc and set up was going to be, with Adrien starting out treating the Miraculous for freedom and fun, but gradually getting more serious as a hero. In contrast to Felix, it'd be a more pleasant start over all, Adrien easily clicks with his partner and they become fast friends and work off each other well, and he clicks with Tikki quickly and easily. Even more so as Tikki fills the void his mom left, being affectionate and supportive of Adrien, though she does push for his growth and change in character (take initiative to help others, be more considerate, stand up to his father and have an actual conversation with him). The cons are more of a reverse of Felix, where despite the pleasant start, I would explore a sour path later, working off the fact that Adrien struggles with pressure and exclusion and has a tendency to quit. And Tikki will be another who adds pressure and expectation to his life. It will be an exploration of how much does Adrien genuinely want to be a hero, and at this time, I cannot promise that he would stay as one. That end is up in the air.
If it helps in the choice making, both are planned to get a Miraculous either way, it's just one will be a more major lead character and will get a Miraculous sooner. The other has to wait for "S2" at the earliest. To add to it, there is a potential plot bunny I have of the other twin discovering their brother is the hero, and the shenanigans of that discovery which will lead to their future Miraculous involvement. And depending on who's the civilian, that can have some polarizing responses (Adrien would be over the moon while Felix instead would be stressing about it), so this can be a factor to consider too.
I also need to stress, Adrienette will not be endgame in this Miraculous Rewrite. There may be initial crushes, but that's it. They will just be good friends. Picking Adrien thinking Adrienette will happen will not happen. This is more about the characters and how they will grow and work off each other than the ships. At this time, I'd say romance would just really take a back seat, I want it to be more friendship focused initially.
As I see the potential in both options as leads, working off Tikki, and as a potential partner for Marinette, and it needs to be decided before I can take things further, it'd be a big help to get others opinion/preference on the other major lead to follow.
Who should get the Ladybug Miraculous?
Felix
Adrien
