#askbalthazaar

Who wants to get fisted?

It's Balthazaar from the Looming Gaia series!

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

This is @niittinaatti's fault for comparing Balthazaar to Homer Simpson in her videos lmao

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

Many years ago, I had an older friend who served in the military when he was younger. He told me about a guy he served with named Balthazaar Valentino, and he thought that was the coolest name ever. Supposedly he was like a real-life action hero and my friend admired him a lot. My friend said he always wanted to draw comics and name a character after this guy, but he never got around to it.

I was like, "I draw comics, I could totally name one of my characters after him." And he was stoked! Balthazaar Valentino became a character in Fairy Tale Rejects, then an older version of him went on to appear in its successor, the World of Looming Gaia series.

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

I don't think that's whiny at all, it's a legitimate question! Azadora dresses more like an Evangelite or Folkvaran because that's the popular style in the region she's most familiar with (Noalen).

I imagine it's much easier to find clothing in this style, so that's what Balthazaar buys for her. He wants her to fit in with other kids she meets in this land.

As for Balthazaar, he usually dresses in Rodangese fashion because it's what he's more familiar with. I imagine Noalish styles feel foreign to him.

If Azadora remembered her life in Rodanga, she would probably dress like Balthazaar. But Noalen is all she knows after her amnesia.

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

Interesting ship! I guess they do have a few cute moments together. To be honest though, I don't think they're right for eachother...Balthazaar is a slobby blue collar dude, Linde is a prissy high-maintenance chick. They also have very different values, which leads to arguments between them.

Linde and Feredil did get along well though, they were pretty good friends. If Balthazaar left Feredil for Linde, that would obviously tank that friendship.

Feredil wasn't in love with Balthazaar, she just kinda settled for him because she was afraid of ending up with someone worse. The two had a toxic, unfaithful, and codependent relationship.

I think Linde would be a better wife to Balthazaar, if only because she's his friend and actually cares for him to an extent. But it still would not be a happy marriage, they would have a lot of issues that I don't see them being able to work through.

That's just my opinion though! Feel free to disagree.

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

That's true! Their origin stories all began a bit later in their lives, so we didn't get to look into their childhoods the way we did with most of the other FGG.

I do have an illustration of a young Javaan and his mother here, but no artwork of the other SKS guys as kids yet.

Linde was a typical snotty rich girl, with one key difference...she didn't have a lot of friends. She was actually quite lonely, since her parents sent her to private school and forbade her from going out very much. They were worried about her safety due to her albinism, as people in their region are very superstitious and have ignorant beliefs about albino people.

As a child, Linde spent too much time alone, consuming media that made her feel bad about herself. She was terribly self-critical and insecure from a young age. When I imagine Linde as a child, I see an agitated, demanding, and unpleasant little girl. Despite her family's wealth, I don't think she was very happy back then.

As for Balthazaar, he claims he had a normal, happy childhood. Though he lived in a crowded house and his family was far from rich, they all loved and supported eachother. I think Balthazaar's biggest problem in his youth was his impulsivity. He was bad-tempered and quick to throw punches, and ultimately this got him into huge trouble as an adult. I think Balthazaar's parents were stretched thin with their jobs and too many kids, so maybe Balthazaar didn't get as much attention as he needed. He meant well, but he was kind of a troublemaker.

Skel speaks fondly of his life with the Barhatian royal family. Though he was technically a slave, the family never treated him like one. Instead, the king and queen treated him like one of their own children. He lived a charmed life, or so he thought. Maybe he was a little spoiled, but overall he was a happy and carefree boy...very much a contrast to the bitter, neurotic man he grew up to be! In his youth he was known for being sweet, mischievious, and romantic. It's a shame that life beat these qualities out of him later on.

I don't think Javaan ever really got to be a kid. From the day he was born, he learned that the world was harsh and unfair, and there was no time for games. His mother taught him empathy. She told him that a loveless, degenerate existence is not worth surviving for; It's love that makes life worth living. Javaan really took that to heart, so even in his most desperate moments, he tried to show mercy and kindness to others. I imagine Javaan was a good-hearted boy who was forced to commit bad behaviors by his circumstances, but ultimately that's what motivated him to seek a better life as an adult.

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

They are cuties! I'm not sure they're in the right age range to be dating eachother though. At this point in the series, Tomato is 13 and Azadora is 10. This gap won't matter when they're older, but right now they are in pretty different stages of life. Tomato is starting to deal with teenager problems and Azadora is still just a kid, they can't relate to eachother very much. I think they just play together because frankly, there aren't a lot of kids in the Hollow and they don't have much choice.

But let's say a few years pass. Azadora is 18 and Tomato is 21, and they've decided to date eachother. How would their parents react?

In short...not well. At least not at first.

Balthazaar just doesn't want his precious Dory dating anyone, period. He doesn't trust that any boy is good enough for her. He thinks they're all horny little scumbags who will only break her heart, or worse, trap her in a crummy marriage. He does want her to marry someday, but in reality, her suitors would have to move mountains to earn his approval.

Balthazaar likes Ginger and Tomato well enough (He hates Itchy, but so does everyone, so...) but the notion of a satyr boy dating his daughter would sting him. He wouldn't like it at all. He's a bit prejudiced and believes male satyrs are only after sex, that they're hopeless drunks who can't hold a job or be responsible. He doesn't dislike Tomato, but he doesn't want him as a son-in-law.

Itchy, meanwhile, is hootin' and hollerin' with pride because his son is dating a cute girl! A cute human girl! He believes all humans have lots of money, and because they don't face discrimination that satyrs do, life is always easy for them. He encourages Tomato to put a ring on that girl's finger as soon as possible so he can reap all those social benefits a human wife would give him.

Ginger is much more reluctant about this. She worries that because Azadora is human, this means she will never have grandchildren. She also worries that their species differences will cause drama in the relationship. But she likes Balthazaar and Azadora; they are her friends and she knows they're good people. Ultimately she just wants Tomato to be happy, so she gives her blessing, even if she's not 100% on board with the idea.

Cinnamon's just like, "You want to marry my brother? GROSS. He sucks lol"

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

You're talking about this character, right?

That's Keely! She was a character who was supposed to appear in the series, but was scrapped and later replaced with Azadora. She was an abandoned satyr who would be adopted by Balthazaar and Feredil, but some story changes were made that conflicted with this, so unfortunately she went into the scrap bin.

One day I'd like to fish her back out and do something else with her, but I haven't decided what yet. She's just kinda sitting on the backburner right now.

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Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost