Enneagram – Page 25 – Enneagram and Encaustic

Finding Liara

I and my two away team members are dropped on a planet. We drive and fight our way into an archaeological dig site, a Prothean ruin. Here we’ll find Liara — Matriarch Benezia’s daughter who is a scientist and an Asari biotic (which is Mass Effect’s version of magical powers). Geth swarm the ruin, looking for her. Saren, for some reason, wants her. Is it because of her mother? Or is it her expertise in Prothean technology and history? We can only guess.

After rescuing her and bringing her to our ship, we tell Liara about the Beacon and its vision. Her research shows that the Protheans were just another in a line of races who inhabit the galaxy and then disappear. We introduce her to the idea of the Reapers, the ones who extinguished the Protheans. She’s never heard of them or the Conduit, but she believes her knowledge can help us as we search. Our team is now complete.

Liara is very impressed with Shepard’s strong will. She, like most every other NPC in the game, will eventually invade our personal space and suggest a hook up.

LI, NULL

This is Shang-Chi’s mother. We don’t see much of her, but she is so impressive I wish we saw more. Gentle, obviously. She defeats the Ringbearer in the smoothest, quietest manner possible. Nature swirls around her, a cloud of leaves dancing with her movements. It’s lovely.

She gives up her own country to live with her husband and children. As a mother, she’s a fearless defender and a patient teacher.

Actually, she’s kind of perfect. Too perfect? Is she a real character or only an avatar of motherhood and sacrifice? She’s portrayed so beautifully, I want to give her a number, lol! Sadly, though, she has no flaws, no arc, and she’s basically fridged.

Forming the Team

We’re still on the Citadel, trying to prove that Saren has gone rogue. In the process of digging up clues, though, we assemble the rest of the team. Garrus the Turian is doing his own independent investigation, and when we find him he rolls in. Wrex, a Krogan badass, is ready to join us. And Tali, a Quarian who always wears her head mask, has information we need.

Presenting ourselves for the camera. From left to right: Udina (who deserves to only be seen from the rear), Tali, Garrus, Athena (me), and Wrex.

While on her Pilgrimage, a Quarian tradition, Tali disables a Geth and accesses its memory core. There she finds proof that Saren is working with them. When we take her and her recording to the Council, they finally declare Saren a rogue and grant our Shepard Spectre status so that we can hunt him down. Hopefully we’re now ready to leave the station and begin our adventure.

Tali delivers much information that isn’t completely relevant at this point, but we should keep it in reserve:

Saren seeks the Conduit, a form of Prothean technology like the Beacon. Then we’re introduced to the idea of the Reapers, an advanced machinist species that wiped out the Protheans 50,000 years ago. The Geth revere the Reapers as gods, and Saren is presenting himself as the Reapers’ prophet, and the one who can bring them back. Working with him (identified on the recording) is Matriarch Benezia, a powerful Asari elder.

Also, something mostly irrelevant until Mass Effect 2, Wrex explains about the genophage. The Salarians infected the entire Krogan race with it and now his people, unable to reproduce, are dying out.

The Salarian Councilor. It’s easy to believe that this species bioengineered a deadly weapon. Look at that face!

SHAUN/SHANG-CHI, NINE

Our protagonist, who will become a Marvel superhero in later projects, has a very strict father and a dead mother. (Thanks, Disney, for killing off another mom.) He leaves home in his teens, making a new life in America, and only returns when his father sends goons to attack him and steal his mother’s pendant.

So, strong and self-determined. He sets out with nothing. Of course he’s a physical creature, but, interestingly, I don’t think he’s a Body Type. Until called to fight he shows no interest in physical skills. His father, through abuse, coerces him to train. It’s not really something Shaun seeks from his own sense of self.

What is he, then? First, let me honestly own that I wasn’t impressed with Shaun. He was the weakest link in an otherwise good movie. The actor is wooden, or too stoic to be understood even by a camera, and I had a hard time engaging with his character. He’s not a Body Type, and he certainly isn’t a Head Type. Before his father comes for him, Shaun is a valet driver with little ambition or interest beyond karaoke night with his friend Katy. By default he becomes a Heart Type (or a Null).

I’m wrong.

You know what he is? A badly written Nine. He avoids conflict, which would be a defining trait. He’s a superhero, so they’ve put him in the traditional Nine silo, but given him none of the other characteristics of a Nine. Where is his lazy good humor? Where is his curiosity about people and the world? Where is his drive to maintain his activity level? Where is his diplomacy and righteous judgment? He decides his must kill his father, render a verdict, but it’s all so bland and contrived. It comes from the writers and not from a character drive.

I will call him a Nine, because that’s what the movie expects us to see, but I don’t think the showrunners or the actor have earned the number.

The Chase

See my Critical Notes after the breakdown for how I would fix a mistaken Three in an otherwise smoothly-structured episode.

ONE

Appa and the gang rest at a campsite.

TWO

Appa’s fur covers the ground. Aang blames the spring season as Appa shakes loose more of his coat.

THREE

From the fur Sokka makes a silly wig and Aang a beard. Rolling her eyes, Katara says she’s glad there’s now another girl in the group. Toph steps between the guys and lifts her arms to show off her “hairy” pits. A beat, and then Katara joins in the laughter.

KATY, EIGHT

Who is this fabulous Shang-Chi goddess, lol? Awkwafina brings good-natured humor, compassion, loyalty, and grit to the role. (When she starts singing “Hotel California” at a thug on a skyscraper ledge, rip.) At first we think of her as a good egg and a comedic relief sidekick. That archery, though! I didn’t expect her to become a superhero partner.

So let’s take the archery seriously. Let’s say it’s not just a gimmick (Give the lively comedienne a pointy prop!) but a physical gift that surprises her, an inherent trait. Body Type, right? I have a hard time seeing Heart or Head jumping in and excelling at a complicated athletic discipline. With time and training, yes, but not in a few days’ timespan. (Again, we’re suspending our disbelief and calling the whole Ta Lo adventure plausible.)

She’s too flamboyant to be a Nine, but what about an Eight or a One? Her boldness and ribald humor could indicate either number.

I’m going to say Eight. I love the idea that the superhero Eight, an overworked and tired trope, is refreshed here by Katy’s unique perspective. Also, an Eight can hide their athleticism more than a One can. A One is an Energizer bunny, and that’s not our Katy.

The Citadel

We dock at a flying city, the Citadel. It’s the hub of galactic civilization, the home of the Council. (The Galaxy Council? The Universe Council? Three races represent the three Council seats and humans aren’t one of them.)

We’re here to complain about Saren and ask that the Council revoke his Spectre status. Instead, Saren deflects any blame and makes us look like whiny babies. We’ll need more proof to convince the Council.

Mostly we’re here to introduce ourselves to the world-building. All the races have ambassadors here, so we meet Elcor (the elephantine creatures who tell you their feelings aloud with no passion), the Volus (small, round creatures who breathe through a mask apparatus and work back-end finance deals), the Hanar (pink jelly tentacle creatures who speak in the third person), and, of course, the powerful Asari (blue-skinned women who live a long time), and the lizard-like and super-brainy Salarians. Turian, Asari, and Salarian are the Council members.

We have the opportunity to load up on side missions that basically deliver flavor and immersion. It works, but the fighting is at a minimum, which can get boring.

BLACK WIDOW, ONE

Poor Natasha. Even in her own movie she’s basically a sidekick. The closest we get to specific character traits is in Endgame when she tries to keep the team and the world post-Blip together. Her willingness to run a radio base and contact station in the midst of chaos is one of her most interesting moments.

Otherwise, Natasha is a competent assassin with a monstrous origin story. All credit to Johansson for giving humor and stoicism to a one-dimensional character.

So who is this Black Widow? All of the girls in the program are trained physically. Can she claim a Body Type, or is every Widow forced into excellence? Let’s say no, and see where that takes us. She longs for community, yet keeps herself apart as someone undeserving of friendship and intimacy. Child Natasha is written as an Eight, the way she fights for her sister against soldiers and authority. It never felt right, though, because adult Natasha isn’t an Eight. Wait, is she a One?

Ah, of course. Her wit, her fast-paced fighting style, and her moral code (“there’s red in my ledger”) all point to One. This is why her movie isn’t good. The showrunners went dark. With a One, the tone needs to go light. A One’s quickness, their cleverness and problem-solving optimism, would shine more in an Antman-style format. Natasha’s so focused I can see why they went in the direction they did, but it was a mistake. The beauty of a One is the surprise: they’re physically dedicated and morally serious, yet they’ll come up with the sharpest jokes and insights. Natasha is given these gifts in movies like Winter Soldier, yet they forgot about them during her own project. Oh, man, that’s sad.

Zuko Alone

We have a problem, lol. See my Critical Notes after the breakdown.

ONE

We see Zuko riding his ostrich-horse across a ravine bridge in a desertscape. (The Western theme is set right away.) His stomach rumbles as he smells meat cooking. Grasping his knife, he considers killing the man tending the fire.

THREE

The man turns to attend to his pregnant wife. (This is a couple we will see again in a later episode.) Zuko continues on, drinking the last of his water.

TWO

Now woozy and faint, Zuko dreams of his mother as she walks away from him.

HAWKEYE, NULL

The first time we meet him in the MCU he’s co-opted by Loki and brain-manipulated into a villainous henchman. Bad choice! He becomes likable in later movies, but he’ll always have the taint, our memory, of the evil version of him.

(Why do so many movies remove a character’s free will? I hate that kind of lazy writing, but that’s another topic, lol.)

Later we learn that Clint has a family. He ends up as the most normal superhero in the series. When we finally spend time with him in his own show we see he’s dogged, dutiful, and honorable. His family disappeared in the Blip and he lost it, turning rogue. He’s really just a dedicated dad and husband who can shoot arrows.

Actually, I think he’s written all over the place. Early on, he’s not a character at all, just a plot point. He’s the Avenger with no back story. Even his eponymous series is more about the young woman who will team with him than it is about him. I want to call him a Null, a character the writers didn’t develop with enough consistency to fit into an Enneagram identity. Does he pull it out at the end in Hawkeye? He has the trooper qualities of a Six, although he’s much too physically fearless for that. He has the recklessness of a Nine in trouble.

No. I refuse to examine a character who’s been in multiple properties yet only begins to develop at the end. He’s important enough to deserve a fully-fleshed personality, and I find it disrespectful to the character that they did not give him that. A Hawkeye written with integrity helps the showrunners craft a better story and gives Renner more foundation for a better performance. Someone this haphazard is a Null.