A Good Death Is Its Own Reward - Storyteller's Crate

I love killing characters. I love it when a noble character—or perhaps an ignoble one on his way to redemption—gets his grit on and sacrifices himself for someone he loves or for the larger cause. I love pulling on my own heartstrings, never mind my readers’. I love the epicness a well-placed death can bring to an otherwise mundane story.

— K. M. Weiland

Introduction:

Welcome, welcome to City 17-- Wait no, wrong intro. Today I wanted to look at the prospect of character death and bringing forward a few things I wanted to address when it came to making sure they fit and which ones are the best deaths in my opinion.

From an artistic standpoint, for a storytelling standpoint and more. As such, I set out on an endeavour to deliver you with a good article and the death it must receive.

I will be discussing the steps to take, the ideas, character deaths I love and finally, I will be providing an excerpt for a death. With all the things provided here, I will attempt to provide a good example of a random character of my choosing.

Without further ado, however, let's get in on this.

Act I Dance of Death

Death is an integral part of storytelling, something that can usher in a new era in the story, close a chapter for many intents and purposes. But in many ways, death can be used to drive plots forward. How this is used is by delivering a death that fits within the confinements of the character. And of course, every death is delivered differently.

From the most inconspicuous extra in a scene to the main character in the story, these are always in many ways different, you're not going to deliver an extra to his death and give him just as much attention as the main character, and you're not going to deliver the main character to his death and give him the attention that you provide your extra.

In many ways, I wanted to deliver an understanding of death in literature and how it can be used to fuel the narrative, close a chapter or halt progress to allow the environment around your character to keep the progress of the story slow.

Building Values:

One of the most important steps in this entire ordeal and something that is also very much befitting when speaking in regards to character development - something that I could potentially touch upon in a later article if I ever decide to dedicate such an article to character development. - Is the fact that you must build integral values in your characters, by this I mean you must create a personality that has some kind of value for its existence. A trope, so per se.

To do this is to create a pattern that you must reign yourself with when it comes to delivering your character's life and experience with, developing them either destroying those beliefs and redeeming them or following through till the end. One such example would be the quality of a lone wolf. One such lone wolf comes to mind is THE Cowboy Bebop. Spike.

Someone that in the end, after his journey was said and done, set out to kill his past, settle a score. He set out alone, leaving behind his new formed family in the hopes of answering a question that remained; yearning for an ending, to fill the void. He ultimately settled his score. Dying in the process, with values being built upon him all throughout his journey that led towards this moment in time, causing his ultimate demise.

Making Sure It Is Right:

Making sure it is the right death is something that often times comes to you, and stays, latching at your mind like a plague until you stop to consider it. Sometimes those are the best ideas, the ones that come to you and they come to stay. But many a time it involves a lot of thinking and a lot of theorising.

It involves discussion, it involves self-thought and admittedly, a lot of self-doubt towards your ability to achieve the death that you truly want and that you know your story demands.

These are normal things when telling a story, and as such, they should not be feared. To be sure of a death is to be confident that you will fulfil the character's role. So make sure it is the right one.

Blaze of Glory? Or Silent Death?:

This is an issue that I have seen in one place or another, people have the perception that they must get a character death that aligns with their views of the character, or even more so, this applies to anything even with something like shipping.

People become so blinded by their opinions that they become so entitled towards to the point that they expect it to happen and if it doesn't they become violent.

Forgetting about the author's needs and values, forgetting about giving the story what it needs for their skewed ideas of perfection.

So, as such, the issue of a silent death vs a blaze of glory arises, becoming something that many people expect a character to die in a blaze of glory, a last hurrah, but as such they are blinded towards what the story demands, in the case of Darth Maul it demanded a silent death and that they provided. One must be careful choosing the right death for their characters, and in many ways, one must be careful not to listen to everybody. You cannot cater to everyone's ideas, so cater to your own.

Act II Thoughts on Demise

Many times have I seen that death should not be delivered in a way that makes sense with the story, I want to trump that assumption right now, because for the most part death should have a purpose, and yes, I agree that sometimes catering to the public is important, but bringing death is not an easy step, in many ways it is the most difficult chapter to tackle.

As discussed before, you must make sense of the death that you want to tell, you cannot always bring death in a blaze of glory and more often than not, the smartest thing to do is to build your death upon the foundations of your character, being antagonist, protagonist, deuteragonist, whatever.

Death is arguably the one chance that you as an author retain to make an impact on people with your character if you fail this step your character won't be remembered as fondly or as you'd like it to be. One such example is that of Commander Shepards. By allowing you to choose your death, instead of delivering the intended end of the story despite your choices - Destruction is the right choice, you won't change my mind. - the experience turns into more of an experiment where you see if your players choose the right ending. And at which point, it becomes a guessing game of whether or not your character will have as much of an impact as you hope he would at the end of his story.

Nevertheless, death is your chance to make a stand and say, his/her journey was or wasn't worth it in the end.

Purpose of Death:

Death's purpose in storytelling is to deliver the end of a character's journey, as stated before, it is your chance to leave an impact upon your reader/viewer/player's mind, something that is very special no matter the cost. And, of course, it is a chance to close the chapter, finalise the story or usher in a new one.

It is in many ways the most important aspect of storytelling when the story deals with suspense and drama, such examples being the highly regarded Red Wedding, something that nobody truly saw coming and came out the other side scarred to never forget the scene in question.

Its purpose lies in many things, but, the most important one is to leave an impact on whoever is enjoying your story, to take a stand and prove your worth as an author. Bad deaths are easily forgotten, good deaths will truthfully shine on their own.

A Perfect Demise; Seldom Catering:

Catering to the masses is probably the worst thing you could do as a storyteller, once anything you build gathers enough hype, nothing you do or attempt to change to fit the agendas of your 'fanbase' will truly satisfy them. No matter how hard you try to make everyone happy, you mustn't let yourself get carried away by what people say.

You tell the story that you want to tell, that would make the most sense for you and the universe that you built, and make yourself happy with what is on your paper, study your character's death very carefully, as you can connect it to earlier tropes.

One such example that I can allow myself to bring up is that of Master Chief Petty Officer John-117. While not dead, you can already tell his intended end, with his character quirks and more, he is a character that is bound to his team and not to life, he cares about his people above all else, even going as far as mentioning 'After the game, the queen and the pawn go into the same box.' after taking a bullet for his fellow team member Samuel-034.

This character's death should be one that upholds his values, shows who he was and who he became along the years, as such, the Master Chief should die in battle, alone, sacrificing himself for his family.

For his life has been spent like a wolf, fighting with the pack, and preying on smaller prey, lucky enough to go the other side unscathed to return to his pack.

In the end, the wolf must die, licking his wounds, alone.

"Wolves, children are fierce hunters. But while any wolf worth his salt can hunt and kill a rabbit, a wolf attempting to take down a larger prey by itself... Can face a grisly end."

— Déjà.

When you cater, you lose the opportunity to give the characters a good death. Which in its own right becomes its own reward. No matter the death and no matter the cost, you cannot let yourself be swayed away from what the story rightly demands.

To quote one of my favourite writers and directors.

“If you talk to a lot of people that sword fight, they’ll tell you that people who are very good, don’t have long fights. It's very quick. And so that scene is a homage to the Seventh Samurai, I think on one level people would be excited to see another prolonged lightsaber fight. But, I just really never saw the confrontation that way because to do that is to say the characters don’t have growth, yes, its exciting as an audience member but it’s not a really believable thing – The storytelling has to evolve.”

— Dave Filoni

Characters Who Danced:

I wanted to highlight a list of great deaths, with their own little sections and in a nutshell explanations. So, without further ado, let's do that:

Darth Maul - Star Wars Rebels

A deceived man, a slave of his own hatred of a man that he vowed to kill, even if it killed him. And killed him it did...

Darth Maul died, redeeming himself in the arms of Obi-Wan, finally seeing past his hatred, and seeing deep inside his own actions, he died the same man that he started his journey as, but in that very last moment. He saw his mistakes.

"Tell me... Is he the chosen one?"

"He is..."

"He will... Avenge... us."

Satine Kryze - Star Wars Clone Wars

Her death was that of a higher purpose, she strengthened Obi-Wan's resolve to the light side, with her last words serving as the culprit to such a resolve. Her death was meant to break Obi-Wan, make him share Maul's pain of loss and suffering.

"Remember, my dear Obi-Wan... I've loved always... I always will."

Samuel-034 - Halo The Fall of Reach

"Sam fell first. And yet he showed us that the Covenant could be killed. Sam proved we could win this war. Every battle won is built on the foundation of that sacrifice. If we survive this, it's because Sam showed us the way."

— Fred-104 on Sam's sacrifice aboard Unrelenting

Sam was the first that fell for the Spartan-II program, staying behind as his suit was punctured by plasma, and thus, he would be unable to get back through space. With no other option, he stayed behind, ensuring the destruction of the Covenant Vessel named Unrelenting.

His death inspired the rest of his family, the other Spartan-IIs that the Covenant could be killed, years later, they owe their survival to Sam.

John Basilone (IRL) - The Pacific:

A real figure, Sergeant John Basilone served during World War II from the Philipines to Guadalcanal, to his death in Iwo Jima. He earned the Medal of Honor for his actions in Guadalcanal, as well as the Navy Cross posthumously for his actions in Iwo Jima.

His death in The Pacific is depicted as one that contains no glory, because he dedicated himself to his service to the marines and as such his death was not that of a blaze of glory, but one that was indistinguishable from the rest as many soldiers fell around him.

Officer K - Blade Runner 2049

"Dying for the right cause is the most human thing we can do"

After the revelation that he was not human after all, K, set out to kill Deckard, however, through his own choice he comes to understand that taking the matter into his own hands and doing what he feels is right is perhaps, the most human thing he can do.

At the end, when K touched the snow for the first time, with no more protocols to control him, after having done what he felt was right and saved Deckard after killing Luv, drowning her below the waters. It was time for him to die, so he laid down on the snow-covered stairs, after doing the most human thing he could do, and allowed himself to be taken away by death.

Roy Batty - Blade Runner

"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die."

Roy Batty was one such case for redemption, having Deckard at his own will, "Quite an experience to live in fear, isn't it? That's what it means to be a slave..."

he came to the realisation that killing Deckard would just be following his own protocol, he would continue being a slave even in his last moments. So, he decided to do the opposite of his protocol and pulled Deckard up, he died a free man, choosing his last actions through his own will.

Baldr - God Of War

"Why... Why do you even care? You- You could've walked away!"

"The cycle ends here, we must be better than this..."

"Snow..."

For the sake of spoilers, I will make this text hidden, for the sake of those that don't want to be spoiled. You may select the text and read, or otherwise, copy and paste it elsewhere.

But, something that makes his death so satisfying is the abuse that comes with his life, having been robbed of his ability to feel, in every way by his mother Freya, he resented her in a way that would make a son kill his own mother. It was a deep hatred that burned within him. When the time came, however, he took to harassing Kratos, deeming him as the one that would make him feel. And feel he did, when the curse bestowed by his mother was broken by the tip of the arrow that was gifted to Kratos' son; Atreus.

Baldr attempted to kill his mother, choking her, before Kratos came over and snapped Baldr's neck. To which, in his final moments made him feel the truth of life, Baldr was acquitted of his blinding rage towards his mother making him realise the beauty of the snow. Feeling one last time as he fell dead. One of the most subtle hints towards this is the fact that the score for this specific scene is called 'Salvation'. further hinting at the salvation that was bestowed upon Baldr by Kratos. By killing him, he liberated the man from his blinding rage, from all his emotional pain and Baldr found peace.

Act III

Closing A Chapter

"I remember the day... The day the Master Chief fell in battle. I remember it vividly like it was yesterday. He was like a god, a giant of old cruising his way through the battlefield like a Valkyrie and delivering the dead to Valhalla... It was beautiful in a way, he gave us hope.

He was on his way to the objective, rallying us with him in a way I had seen no man before do. He came to us amidst particle fire and plasma, some of it deflecting off his shield like mere rocks that were thrown at him then led us. He determined us to fight, the sight of a mythical Spartan-II in battle it made us all the more stronger. But we wouldn't expect to see him fall like a mere mortal, it was quick and unannounced. A particle beam struck his shield and then a secondary hit struck his heart... He fell before my eyes as everyone sped forward still rallying toward the objective with the hope he bestowed us, he fell like a dog on the battlefield.

The demigod bled, just like the rest of us..."

Conclusion:

In conclusion for a TLDR version of all of this:

Don't be lazy, make your deaths worth every moment of your reader/player/audience. It's your only chance to make an impact make sure it sticks.

In a non-TLDR version:

We must make sure that we're smart, smart authors at that, we must make certain of the fact that it is our only chance to truly make a lasting impact on our audience and as such it must be seized at every moment, of course, its not necessary for every character, you are not going to give an extra a blissful death of a warrior or a redeemable death with arguably lots of effort put into it.

But you must make sure that your main cast, deuteragonist, antagonist, protagonist, etc. They all need to get a death that 1.

Makes sense with the type of character they are. 2. Make sense within the parameters of the story you're telling. 3. Properly built up through patience and care in storytelling. 4. Managed correctly.

A good death is not its own reward if it is not delivered correctly or in the right time, so as the last measure to touch upon today, that is a question that must be answered by one person and one person alone - the storyteller; you.

Author's Notes:

And that is the end of it! I hope you all enjoyed this one I had some issues coming to the completion of this article but I guess better late than never! I'd like to issue a formal apology for the lack of content this month, though, I haven't been feeling the drive I once felt lately and it has really extinguished my fire to work.

I know I am usually very much the type of work hard to earn what you want but this month has been terrible for me and my emotional health and my creativity. As such, I will try to release one more article this month before it ends to make up for it.

Thank you for your support of my work, it means everything to me.

I will also leave my tweet here, sharing is appreciated!

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