#fhb

ridley!! i love them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i still can’t figure out how to draw them, but i’ll get there)

ridley is super duper introverted, emotionally distant, and FULL OF ANGER. they’re angry at themself, at the rangers, at the goverment, and at the world. they’re not one to express themself, though, so they kinda just. stew in silence. ortega forced them to start going to therapy, but they just sit there and glare at the doctor for an hour (and occasionally Go Off and give a good ol villain monologue).

they have difficulty with empathy, partially from their upbringing, partially because they’re autisitc, and partially because of their trauma. they have difficulty talking to people (they sign on the days it’s too hard for them to speak). they’re quiet and tend to be more on the serious side, although ortega helps them lighten up and they can be pretty funny when they feel like it (their sense of humor is dry and sarcastic and usually at someone else’s expense, though).

however, even though they’re pretty stand-off ish, they still care deeply about the few friends they have, and they’re very passionate about what they believe in. they’re also pretty compassionate, when they remember to be- they try their best not to hurt innocent people (it still happens, though, but there’s nothing you can do about that). they will however have no issues hurting or killing people they feel deserve it (rich people, politicians, the people who’ve hurt them). 

they love animals and nature, and love going for walks on the beach and in the park. if they had it their way, they’d own a million dogs.

game facts:

their puppet is a man named john! he’s mixed race, has black eyes, and curly hair that’s dyed blue on the top! i’ll draw him eventually. john is ridley’s way of living the life they know they never could have. they hate themself for it, too- see, they tell themself. this is everything you could never be. people like john. he’s normal. people would notice if he went missing. people would come save him.

their villain name is inevitable, because that’s how they feel about the whole situation. they’re a huge believer in destiny and in the butterfly effect and stuff- every is connected and everything that has ever happened to them in life has been leading up to their inevitable fall from grace.

they’re an anarchist! their main goal is taking down the government (and causing a lotta chaos). to them, the government is the first “ripple” in the butterfly effect; everything can be traced back to them, they’re the reason for all of ridley’s pain. so ridley has to destroy them.

i’m still workin on a design for their suit, but it’s black and red and has a lot of sharp edges. and teeth. they want others to feel as terrified as they have their whole life.

theyre more of a fighter than a tactician, and they’re tech-savy. for their armor boosts, they picked telepathy bc duh, and strength bc their fighting style is very physical- they love to punch people, hard. (they’re a boxer). plus, nothing beats the unbridled joy that comes with lifting a car over your head.

relationships in detail:

ridley is super duper in love w ricardo and has been for like. a decade. ricardo has loved ridley back for about the same amount of time, but the two of them have kinda been stuck in that pining stage for eternity (*ridley voice* do you ever yearn?). it’s really hard for ridley to let themself love and be loved (bc. ya know. trauma). plus, they know that eventually someone will have to take them down and kill them, and they want that to be as painless as possible for ricardo (because, let’s be real here, it’ll be him. it would be tragic and poetic and dramatic, just like how ridley likes it). however, the two are still drawn to each other, and they may or may not get together by the end of retribution, i’m still trying to work that out. i like angsty slowburns, ok?

Mortum is John’s best friend, but she doesn’t like or trust ridley. that hurts them a lot, so most of their interaction w mortum is as john. Ridley thinks she’s badass and really really cool! they geek out over tech and stuff together.

lady argent is ridley’s nemesis! to ridley, lady argent represents everything bad about the rangers: she’s cold, corrupt, and not afriad to hurt innocents to make herself/ the rangers look good (like in the fight on the bridge). to lady argent, ridley is mean, unfriendly, and definitely doesn’t deserve the praise they get (she just doesn’t see why everyone likes them so much). however, that’s probably mostly ridley and lady argent over-exaggerating. They hate each other, but there’s grudging respect there, somewhere.

ridley doesn’t know WHAT to do about herald. they used to despise him (he was their replacement, he was likeable and charming and beloved and everything they could never be. but then he opened his mouth and turned out to be an ABSOLUTE sweetheart, and rildey just kinda. melted. they’ve never really had someone who like. looks up to them??? and idolizes them???? ridley really hates themself, so the concept of being someone’s hero really makes them like. short circuit. plus he’s kinda cute and super sweet and ahhhhhhh. they train together. (you KNOW once those polyam routes drop i am diving headfirst into flychargestep)

ridley’s relationship with steel is. complicated. they both regret a lot of what happened before heartbreak (steel especially), and they’re starting to open up more and gain a better understanding with each other. as with all the rangers, though, ridley knows they’ll end up on opposite sides of the battlefield, and that’s most painfully apparent with steel. for now, the two are comfortable with just. watching the dogs play together. not really talking much, but enjoying (?) each other’s presence all the same.