Kellan's cards are starting to bother me
Lore forum
Posted on Jan. 17, 2024, 2:52 p.m. by legendofa
Minor spoilers for MKM. Does Kellan have a defined core philosophy (= color identity)? I freely admit I checked out of the story completely with March of the Machines, so I'll start reading the story again, but looking from the outside, he seems a bit annoyingly "perfect-main-character"-ish, in that he's always exactly what the situation needs. And he's the main character, I know. I also know that people can change their beliefs over time. But if color identity for major characters (planeswalkers, story-critical legendary creatures) is defined by their outlook on life, what their priorities and desires are, and Kellan has had three different color identities in three consecutive sets, what does that say about him? So far, it just seems like his life philosophy (as defined by color identity) is "whatever lets him be as plot-relevant as possible."
MKM minispoiler Show
Previous color changes represented major life events. Ajani losing red to become pure white, then adding green represented his personality changing from angry, to serene, to a mentor and nurturer. Sarkhan's color changes showed him as a Jund shaman, then serving Nicol Bolas, then finding inspiration and enlightenment.
Color identity is (or should be) a descriptor of what the character holds dear and considers important, not a descriptor of what the character's good at for this set. Color philosophy is one of the most interesting parts of the game for me, and it kind of looks like it doesn't apply to the new main character.
I am admittedly not keeping very close track to lore consistency, and while I agree that he has main character plot armor, iirc he left Eldraine on a coming-of-age journey of self-discovery, mainly involving looking for his dad to better understand his identity. In light of that, he could have a very undefined perspective of and approach to life. His color inconsistency could be him leaning into whatever life at that moment is requiring of him. Hopefully by the end of this arc, we see him mature and fully settle into a color identity, but I feel like it's still relatively early on.
January 17, 2024 3:16 p.m.
tempest That would be okay, but usually people have some consistent personality traits as they come of age. It's that his non-Adventure, actual character card has literally no consistency (three cards, four colors, zero overlap) that bothers me.
He may well settle into , which could make him a complex and rounded character if handled well. Or it could make him flat and hero-perfect. There is an imbalance to that color set, as far as color quads go, but none of them have been a long-term focus character.
January 17, 2024 3:23 p.m.
FWIW, when we meet all of our planeswalkers they are adults with their (character building) past far behind them. Kellan is really the first story PW (Omenpathwalker?) we see who has a fairly standard childhood. We meet him as his journey begins, and I think that's the idea behind these cards. He's just learned he is fae, he has gained a brand spanking new ability first from his fae swords and now that same fae magic allows him to fly. I think we're watching a young kid figure out his magic and personal identity and I kind of like seeing the change. When other PW's change color, it's because of dramatic and impactful life events - but Kellan has really only had one of those so far and that's learning who his dad is and then walking through an omenpath.
I wonder if there will be a story/arc that more firmly established his character and color identity in the future.
January 18, 2024 8:55 a.m.
Tsukimi I do hope he settles down into a color identity. And looking through, he has a lot of personality traits that don't really correspond too hard to any color--gregariousness, a sense of personal responsibility, social grace, etc. And he's definitely at an age where people tend to be searching for their place in the world. But that shouldn't really change his core personality to the point where he has a completely different set of priorities, (color-defined) personality traits, and worldviews, especially over the course of a few months. And if traveling through an Omenpath is enough to change color identity, wouldn't having a planeswalker spark ignite have the same effect, if not moreso?
Actually, looking at the Adventure parts of his cards, it's almost like whatever adventure he goes on influences what his color identity will be for his next voyage into the multiverse. Something about learning and growing from his experiences? There's almost something there, but I still think the execution is awkward.
January 18, 2024 1:50 p.m.
Hold on, we still have to hit for Thunder Junction, so we should see where he's going with that.
January 19, 2024 8:52 a.m.
seshiro_of_the_orochi says... #8
I heavily second what Tsukimi said, I couldn't have said half as good.
January 19, 2024 12:02 p.m.
seshiro_of_the_orochi I bet you would have said it just as good!
And berryjon this is giving me conspiracy ideas... Oko is Green Blue, Kellan started the exact opposite of that with white red, and has now cycled through colors until (in the set right before the one where we think we've seen silhouettes of Oko) Kellan is now Green Blue as well. So as he's gained more fae powers, he's been becoming more like his dad Oko. Will Thunder Junction have a simic showdown between dad and son or will Kellan dip his toes into black mana? My guess is the former but I'm curious to see how it turns out.
January 19, 2024 12:42 p.m.
ork_mcgork says... #10
While I haven't read the MKM story, I did for WOE and LCI, and he's been presented as a plucky hero-to-be set out on his journey. As someone who works with teenagers, I can tell you that who they're with and what they're currently doing has a tremendous impact on how they act and present themselves (since they don't have a defined sense of self quite yet). I'd fully expect to see him color shift again before he finally realizes who he is "meant to be".
I'll be curious to see how (tentatively) meeting Oko at Thunder Junction affects him, and then how he chooses to be afterwards. I can easily see him meeting Oko and not liiking how his dad acts, and wantingg to be the polar opposite.
... having said all that. I get it from a "how Magic is designed" perspective. We'll likely get consistency from him eventually.
January 20, 2024 12:43 p.m.
It seems like a lot of people are pointing out that Kellan's at an age where people are trying to to figure themselves out, and change how they act in different situations. I get that position, and it makes sense.
But, since I'm stubborn and argumentative, I'm going to say that by teenage and even younger, it's possible to tell when a kid is studious, or has authority problems, or pushes themselves to be the best, or has a deep love of nature. All of these are what I would consider core personality traits that are defined by color in the world of M:tG, an Kellan isn't defined by any of these. I'm also wondering if he would be better defined as completely colorless at this point--I'm not sure he has a defined life philosophy yet, and "absence of color" is mostly colorless.
Going off the little bit of the story I've read so far, I'm actually going to put him in . He's not a Gruul ravager or Innistrad werewolf, but he's kind of reckless , driven more by instinct and short-term desires than by any long-term goals (find his father, and then...) , and is very concerned about how he fits into the world as a whole .
Abaques says... #2
legendofa I agree with everything you just said. I'm not super knowledgeable about Kellan's personality, but unless he's suffering from some type of personality disorder (which would be potentially problematic in it's own right), it appears that he's changing his core characteristics with every set. In my mind that's throwing away a valuable and long-established philosophy and physiology for how Magic's universe works. Differences define things, and if everyone can be anything they want or need to be at the time then there is no drama.
January 17, 2024 3:14 p.m.