"The most basic storytelling formula is that a character wants or needs something, something stands in their way, and thus the character must do something to overcome that obstacle."
"What matters is that the intention be important to them, and that we understand why it's important to them, and the obstacles have to be real."
"Ever since he was born, Eren wanted to be free, and if someone tries to take away his freedom, he won't hesitate to take away theirs first."
"I just want my characters to feel like real people, to have everything they do make sense. Is that really too much to ask?"
"I like the fact that Kong Rong goes into a kill frenzy if his wife is challenged to a duel."
"Ichigo's resolve is to protect his loved ones; this is the context behind why Ichigo is the way that he is."
"Vayne was trying to free mankind from the corrupt Occuria."
"The mechanist is consumed by his desire to learn the secrets of the Dwemer."
"It's the reason he fell to the Sinestro Corps in the first place."
"What I love about Kuro is that he's doing everything he can to disappear and retire from piracy; what he seeks is essentially what Luffy wants: freedom."
"Dominique Franken works to sabotage Roark's career not in spite of her love for him, but because of her love for him."
"Great writing happens when the satisfying narrative or emotional moments... are married to their character's capabilities and motivations."
"People tend to mostly define characters by their core motivation, which is basically what the character moves towards over the course of the story."
"Why would anyone do that for anyone, even if it was the Joker and, you know, if I was a supervillain? But I guess you got to do what you got to do when you're trying to be evil."
"I will be the one, I must be the one. I will capture a human. Then I, the great Papyrus, will get all the things I utterly deserve: respect, recognition."
"It's not about like the masses, the faceless people of the undercity; it's about her people, her family. It's deeply personal."
"Make their motivation so strong and so personal that these conflicts carry the maximum impact."
"Jiraiya, protecting Naruto, was because he understood the Akatsuki's plot."
"But this isn't just nice aesthetically sometimes it's actually important to understanding a character's motivation."
"He's got a genuinely great reason to be so protective."
"The guise of an evil time mage out to destroy the world is a fiction that Knox chose."
"There should be a rhyme and reason to every single beat of your character."
"The true surprise of any killer reveal is actually the 'Why?' rather than the 'who?'"
"But what he wants isn't the potions now. He wants those shards of Zahar all to himself."
"Edward has actual personalized reasons he's getting something out of it whether it's personal revenge against somebody who wronged him specifically or if we're talking about actual monetary gain from performing these actions."
"Elizabeth during our journey says how she wants to escape and go to Paris... she sees Booker as a means to an end."
"There's enough ambiguity in there with Myers motivations that it's tolerable for me."
"Most other game heroes were out to save princesses, conquer empires, save the world. But DK? He just wanted his stuff back."
"At the end of the day, this all comes down to understanding the motivations of your character."
"By adding new backgrounds and motivations to the characters, the show was able to set the stage for interpersonal conflict loaded with higher emotional stakes."
"Somebody wants something... It all boils down to intention and obstacles."
"Magneto just wants equality; everyone's trying to victimize."
"Michael Jordan retiring after playing just 13 NBA seasons in 1998 was the best thing he could have ever done for his legacy."
"I think if LeBron can continue to dominate the league for a few more seasons, he has a chance to retire as the greatest player of all time."
"He's just an insane freak athlete with the mindset of 'I can do this all day long.'"
"Kaido may be in Wano because he too knew that Joyboy would one day come there."
"Would you rather live in a world ruled by chaos or ruled by order? Mr. Grizz not caring about the fate of the world despite claiming to save it is also kind of sketch."
"The relationships have to make sense. What is the motivation of the characters? Why do they behave the way they do?"
"It's not the same as Killmonger. But I'm saying he probably thinks he's doing right. His intentions are probably like, 'I need to do what's right for the world.' But it's like you're trying to create an enemy out of Wanda Maximoff."
"Aerith feels it's her responsibility to stop suffering from achieving his goal."
"Superman just wants to help people because he's a good person with a good upbringing who just so happens to have powers."
"Cure his pain. This is why he wants to let the past die. The only thing that's keeping him from fully committing to the dark side is his family. If he can kill the past, then all that pain will be gone."
"She's only killing them because they shot first and it's either them or her, and she needs to save Lev."
"Asteroth's true goal is to change the hierarchy of the devils in the underworld."
"What Hades wants is Persephone—all of her, all the time."
"Marcy's betrayal is really messed up even though you understand why she did it."
"Ultimately, the Queen recognizes Arisu’s obsession with the truth is the only thing that could slow him down, so she decides to give him exactly what he asked for."
"When a story is presented to someone, that means they're allowed to critique it, especially when it's talking about the main motivations for the character we're playing."
"Like her motivations at the beginning, that's kind of who she was."
"Billy Loomis had the best misdirect and an obvious yet effective motive."
"Vegeta swears vengeance against Black for the murder of future Bulma and the torment of Future Trunks."
"Characters never do anything without a reason. Remember that."
"Believing Homelander is responsible for his wife's death, Billy Butcher dedicates his life to revenge."
"I'm so attached to him... and I want him to save his brother."
"Luke trying to bring Vader to the light and Vader saying 'it's too late for me,' I don't know why but that really always hit me."
"The demands of their patrons drive warlocks toward adventure."
"The rich are nice and happy because they're rich and the main characters feel justified in taking advantage of the rich because they're poor."
"Shaggy goes along with Mystery Incorporated because he genuinely enjoys the mysteries."
"If guilt is the soul's call to action, then Aiden was hell-bent."
"Goku tells him to finish Cell off in his weakened state, but Gohan says he wants to see Cell suffer much more."
"Who is your favorite Titan shifter and which of their motivations can you relate to the most?"
"People came back and said, 'Huh, John, the second Creed was about fighting the son of the guy who killed his father.' It doesn't get any more personal than that."
"Her desire to kill Leslie may sound callous, however she’s the only one who realizes how dangerous it is to let him live."
"For me, the main problem was the lack of motivation for Lex Luthor and for Superman."
"She's a little girl who just wants to be loved."
"Cyrus does not mess around; his main goal is to use the creation trio to destroy the entire universe and recreate it without spirit."
"For all these reasons, I'm sorry, Wanda, I want you to turn against the Avengers and do your own thing because you deserve it after all this."
"He's still trying to impress madeleine because he actually likes her and he nailed it."
"Every main character must be out for their own reasons, their own motivations."
"They gave us more substantial stories with stronger character motivations, while still remaining their wispy trickster-y selves."
"Bakugo's entire self-worth is predicated on the idea that he's the best."
"The most important part of a character is their motivation. If you can't clearly communicate their motives through their actions, he or she is not a complete character."
"Finding out what the other NPC wants, what motivates them, what drives them, that's how you have a game of intrigue."
"It's actually the story that drives the characters."
"He remembers Hikimaru's words... he had to look for him."
"The Attack Titan has always worked towards Aaron's goals... the will of Aaron Jaeger."
"Now it is let's go get Kyle Rayner we have to grab him we have to corrupt him and swing him to our side."
"Wally wants to find his kids, and it's a perfect thing. It's exactly what any parent would do."
"I think about Super Mario and he always seems to be really happy about jumping."
"All she knows is that her father used to guard it before her and she knows it's somehow connected to the great power of the islands."
"That's the point. Have you ever seen Dr. Eggman? He could kill Sonic at any time. It's about sending the message."
"Toyohisa immediately became angry, determined to avenge the Elven women."
"If you don't have a character who wants something, you don't really have someone who's trying to answer a question."
"These two guys aren't really that bad either; they're just kind of like your basic carnies wishing for a better life."
"She is burning with passion and specifically with hatred for Doma."
"So Thanos isn't a lot of waste blindly following the orders of his future self under the idea that one he knows himself so he trusts himself and two there's gonna be some kind of grand payoff or something along the way."
"The main reason I think Calypso is lawful evil is that well, he's the one writing the laws."
"We can all sympathize with the motivations of the Defias Brotherhood."
"Why does Hange think it's only a matter of time for Eren to be eaten?"
"The less dark way to do it is that Galadriel is just simply unable to let go of Revenge, let go of Middle Earth."
"Why would he be the UA traitor spy if he's secretly in love with Jiro? That makes no sense."
"Is this another underground base? It's Miraculous Ladybug's base. She's saying she wants to get revenge on Pennywise."
"Neo didn't just love humanity, he loved a specific person, and this created a new problem for the machines."
"The unfairness laid upon Saitama is our reason to care, is our reason to root for him."
"Tendo doesn't need a reason to help someone. He is just doing what he wants to do."
"His end goal revolves around political influence and the admiration of the people of Skyrim."
"He's not a villain with god of money, violence, or some other dark goal but the same hobby he's always had: saving others."
"Thanos' goal of bringing balance to the universe in order to save sentient life is one born out of compassion and mercy."
"Ichigo's own drive and passion to get stronger has always been for the same singular goal: to protect."
"So Qui-Gon's fighting for Anakin and that's why it's the duel of the fates, the fate of this child."
"Returning Andúril to the City of Kings and uniting the Dúnedain is pretty much Aragorn's main motivation throughout the whole story." - Melanine
"Worldviews can change over time, evolving with excellent role-playing."
"Desires drive your character's actions in certain situations."
"For their sacrifices to matter, for their deaths to have meaning, Ellie's Journey needs to end in some kind of success." - Narrator
"He angrily stated that Kenobi had gotten away and that Padme needed help."
"Woody is almost at all times, even in 'Toy Story 4', thinking about Andy's best interest."
"One of the things that I dislike the most is when characters just do things for no fucking reason."
"Robyn's actions come from a righteous place."
"It's a movie contrivance but I think it'd be more interesting if nobody was actually being properly controlled by him just influenced to act against their own best interest because Loki could like you know convince them to."
"The Joker planned to get caught... he wanted to be locked up all so that he could get to Mr. Lau, the man with all of the mob's money."
"She's got a motive for murder and she's got a plan."
"I think everything Bran's doing is for a reason. He's not going to do anything that isn't for a greater purpose."
"The main reason for Superman's voyage was because of the destruction of planet Krypton mirroring the planet Vegeta."
"She is not serving Vader, she is hunting him."
"Eren fought them because he knew that once the titans were all gone, humanity would have its freedom back."
"He wanted to protect the people he cared about and make this a peaceful world."
"This whole time he's been wanting you know Redemption even though he said I'm gonna like you know defend you brand because of everything I did."
"Zorro's backstory and his goal are indirectly a Revenge plot against the course of nature."
"Steven wants the human part of himself even if it would slow him down."
"Ichigo's whole character is about protecting those he loves. But what about him?"
"I want this Broly to be at least more thoughtful. Maybe he has his own motive."
"Even the wickedest of Witches has their own motivation."
"He loves Katara, so that's what he's going to choose. Love."
"Joel has misunderstood that Ellie's pain is that she believes that only her death can bring meaning to her life."
"Watching Plankton go to extreme lengths just to get the secret formula."
"The swimming pool symbolism zeroes in on why Walt breaks bad in the first place."
"Kelly knows right away that she's going to get revenge on Captain Stone."
"I never give up, even if it means tracking Gabe down in his own Hometown."
"The dragons work to highlight what George R. R. Martin thinks all stories come down to: the human heart in conflict with itself."
"Rogue One is a movie about hope. It's the fact that she all her life has been told that her father is a villain, and she hopes he's dead, but that's not true."
"He's hands down the best villain I think in terms of his motivation. It's basically depopulation."
"These losses and memories are now part of Levy and he swears Revenge which sets up a Big Arc."
"Batman exists to make sure no little boy ever has to live with the pain he does. Batman has to be there for that child. Batman has to be there for his people all the time."
"Farewell, Catnap. Wait for it. I'll definitely be coming back for revenge."
"Everything Grace does is to protect herself or the image she's created as leader of the Apex."
"He would probably attempt to take down one of the yonkos himself."
"One Little Mermaid Theory suggests that Ursula wants Ariel's voice so badly because she knows it holds real magical properties..."
"I'll kill Jimmy Prescott! Where is he? You know he's involved in all this, Sam."
"Clyde Barrow wasn't really interested in money; he was driven by Revenge."
"I will have my revenge or sorrow, leader of the delinquents, this fiery wand will kick all parts, I will enjoy it."
"And maybe like their need for this particular avatar guy..."
"slam dunk follows sakuragi hanamichi a rather slow delinquent teen who joins his high school's basketball team in order to impress a girl"
"Sylvanas was trying to cause as much death as possible to shatter the veil between life and death."
"Witnessing your father murdering your entire family will do that."
"Druid actually pinpoints directly to icarus and it's like icarus was the previous prime eternal... this guy's got motive he's got strength he's got the ability to pull it off."
"Bruce is tracking down league members based on the intel he got from Lex Luthor's laptop."
"Loki probably wants to drive the Giants to be at least somewhat more civilized and maybe this could even tie into why he isn't allowed to leave the country."
"What the tree could offer was more appealing than being a prince to a world not seeing its best days."
"Lee believes her daughter Flora has run off here so she's come to look for her."
"So, that's Dragonball Evolution. There are a lot of stupid things in this movie, but if there's one defining problem with it, it's that characters do things for no reason other than because the plot needs them to."
"A player can have different motivations for a session than their character."
"The motivations of our two protagonists are surprisingly similar which makes it very easy for me to say that if you liked one you're probably gonna like the other."
"Gabby Gabby just wants to be loved by a kid."
"But it's exactly what Agatha wants. Oh my God, oh my God, she's lifting the hex!"
"Joker has a motivation to prove that anyone can be like him with one bad day."
"The motivation of the animatronics and what they want to do in this movie."
"Valentine cries as she tells ender that he must return and try because if he doesn't then everyone else would eventually die as well."
"Zuko wanting the love of a parent is something that we can all relate to."
"This is a Grinch and possibly a revenge for all of his brethren."
"It's logically unbelievably dumb, but the whole point is they motivate his really, really stupid plan with his character, and that's why people understand them."
"Usopp lies because those lies are who he wants to be."
"This is a story with a beginning, a middle, and an end. A twist that makes sense, everyone's character motivations make sense."
"Conflict needs to inform the larger arc of the story. 'What's your plan after that? - Buy my wife. Buy freedom.'"
"What makes ma so batshit crazy in the first place and what is her motivation behind befriending the teens?"
"Simba's exile is what motivated him to do just that because doing the opposite left him feeling miserable and empty."
"That's why I'm here, to finally get my revenge on red."
"The symbolic meaning behind Horikoshi's storytelling as Shigaraki has a vested dream with his family."
"From the beginning in this chapter we see that what she wants, what she desires is not to be Queen, to not conquer, but to go home."
"Suddenly, a compulsion washes over you and you believe that you must pursue her quest."
"Though we've already covered some strong lovers in this list, none come even close to the intense love fueling Hotshot's never-ending quest."
"Every character in Guardians of the Galaxy wants to get back what they lost."
"I think ultimately Obi-Wan acknowledges that, yeah, because he was using Luke as an excuse to stay hidden."
"Devils do love themselves some sweet sweet contracts so contractually I wonder if there's a method by which Satan could break this agreement."
"All of this was just to bring a zombie to annoying ass Cersei."
"Motivation is what makes a character stand out from the rest."
"The fight was going to be over Bucky and truth."
"He bequeathed to you the Uchiha name still fooling you to the very end."
"Kawaki's love for Naruto will drive him into making the hard choices which contradicts everything Boruto and the Konoha shinobis believe in."
"She wants the Nexus powers of the Scarlet Witch she was unable to get from her mother, and she wants them now from Wanda so that she can repair Mephisto."
"But I am interested in Pooh's honey obsession. It's a clear driving force for him throughout these movies. We literally never see him eat anything else."
"Cell tells him he wishes to defeat him and then destroy this planet and take over the entire universe."
"How poetic does it make 'I will finish what you started'?"
"Granola tells Goku to wager everything on his strength."
"Why would he lie? It's business protection from Bowser."
"The cake was always available, Glados just did not want to give it away."
"Starlight has light-related powers and she genuinely believes that joining the Seven is her duty as she's been put on this earth to help others and make the world a better place."
"It's a pretty effective death that makes Javi hate the New Frontier."
"Luffy wants the adventure, he's after the journey."
"At the core of it, his motivation was still love, and I love that about him. Made him a multi-dimensional villain."
"Wenwu's motivation was to save her, not simply destroy everything."
"What if Peach wanted to be kidnapped by Bowser?"
"Every good villain is the hero of their own story."
"My attack on the temple was an attack on what the Jedi have become."
"And I realized, it's small things make you happy."
"The Lotus did stay her hand on purpose because she did generally have maternal feelings for the Tenno."
"Syndrome's hatred and revenge is so deeply rooted that it makes him dangerous."
"Deku intends to save Shigaraki from all for one."
"Understanding why they're doing what they're doing is part of making somebody interesting."
"Doom knows that only he can bring peace to the world... He absolutely despises Reed Richards."
"Even in a fantasy world I would like to see more rationale behind what the characters are doing."