I know some people had problems with the way I wrote Eli. This is a sincere request to learn more about your feelings and reactions to what I wrote.

First let me explain what I believed I was doing with the character. I tried to develop Eli along the lines of the show. If you read my journal you know I wrote his back story, that he was a reincarnated god, Asclepios, who chose to live his life as a mortal- Eli. After his death he goes to his Father (Abba- means father and is from the show) and lives as a sprit. He then sees that a "new threat to the Way has been gaining ground in the land of Greece. Something has awoken an evil energy in the world," so he decides to try and help.

There were rules for Eli that I followed. He could never do anything to anyone. He loved everyone and believed in their ultimate goodness. Eli had only one tool- words. He could forgive- as with Ephany, or he could instruct with the written word. I had a web page to post quotes from the Bible or other sources. I used the Bible because Eli was like Jesus in many ways. I was careful, however, to use only Old Testament quotes to avoid a conflict with Christianity. To be inclusive there were more sources beside the Bible in my writings.

Eli did have a perspective of himself that could have been annoying. He thought that all events pointed to his ultimate destiny. That just seemed to fit his character, and really, is it that different than what most people believe about themselves?

Finally, I have a theory about good and evil I want to put forward here. At the time of the demonization of the child of Minya I wondered: What is the reason for the stories of evil spawns? What purpose do they serve? My family discussed it, and came up with this conclusion: The purpose of writing a really evil character is to confront good. All drama is some form of good vs. evil, but the "evil spawn" is a way to generate an equally powerful goodness to destroy the evil.

It's clear that the story line in the RACE doesn't follow the rules of true drama. There is no protagonist because everyone feels that their own character is the protagonist. And there is no plot because everyone is out for themselves or working with allies. In that light, I see that the dispatching of Eli and Minya in the way that Ame wrote it came from an opposite impulse, not from drama, but from the human condition. In other words he was so good, that you all felt that he deserved to die in a really evil way.

I'm very curious to know how Eli affected you if you were in the RACE. Even if you were just reading I'd like to hear your comments.

I liked the way you wrote Eli. Really, I did. Altough, I might add that Joxer felt a little jealous of Eli now and then, since he really fell over his heels for Minya. Anyhow, I never developt that since, hey! Jox died! *grin*

Still thinking you have done a great job, though. And I thikn it is cool that you have such a great thought behind your writings of Eli. That is just great! Keeping my fingers crossed for you, and everyone else still in the race.

i didn't write my character as the protagonist. i wrote her as antagnonist. and also in the spirit of the show, i never intended for her to prevail--Xena/good always prevails ultimately. but i think you are right in that a couple people did...overdo, for lack of a better word, their character's role in things.

i think the game suffered from an "every man for himself" attitude. i feel like while i, and several other players, tried to contribute in a way that opened creative options for other players while all some people did was immediately undo whatever "bad thing" was done. for example...don't you think it would've been more dramatic to have Gabrielle stay decapitated til some dramatice moment when Alti's plan is diverted at the last moment and Gab's brought back to life...time's reversed...something who knows what...than to have instantly reattached her head in some outlandish way and continue on like that never happened? i think some people didn't repect the other participants contributions in their own writing.

i was gone all last week and quite frankly haven't thought much about this since i got fired up about your comment regarding my whining to have you & WP9 eliminated from the game (i remain pretty sore about that, actually...). but i must say i enjoyed the game in spirit and intent, even if i am happy to be out of it...

Zoom-
I don't want to get too personal in my replies here, but for the record I didn't get involved the story line involving the decapitation of Gabrielle until after others had. But I don't think it was right to incapacitate a player. It would work for a non-player, since that character doesn't have to maintain a journal, but it seems quite unfair to expect a player to continue writing the story when they are dead unless, as in Ephany's case, they decided that for themselves by writing it (because dead in the Xenaverse doesn't mean dead necessarily).

I never said that you were involved in a conspiracy to dispatch Eli and Minya. I'm sorry if what I said about this came off as a criticism of you. It was really aimed at the judging. I disagreed with the decision of the judges to let you quit the game instead of dispatching you for non-participation. In my view that is favoritism. The game was about participation. Your choice to quit was a reason for you/Alti to be dispatched. It should not have been Eli and Minya that week. I know they killed off Auto at his request. But in that case they didn't just let someone else write him.

I'm glad to hear that you figured whatever Alti did would eventually be reversed. I think you wrote a good antagonist, who stuck to her methods and her madness. I was disappointed that you left the game. There were still many bad things left for you to do, even after the child took away your powers. You could have gotten new ones, better ones, but you still would have had to fail at the end. Maybe that was the reason it became too hard for you to write (if it did, I'm not trying to put words in your mouth here, but I've never heard why you quit.)

You didn’t say much about Eli in this thread but what you did say was interesting. I still would like to learn more about what you didn't like about the way I wrote Eli. I'm not going to argue with anyone about their opinions. I really just want to know.

I'm glad to hear that you figured whatever Alti did would eventually be reversed.

it wasn't a matter of 'figuring it out'--it was a given. i don't remember there ever being an ep of XWP where Alti prevailed, eh? and i can't comment as to the why's and how's of what became of Alti. i resigned and was done with it. after that it was out of my hands. and whether you meant it or not, you did say that "your only asumption was that eyezoom complained about Eli & Minya" and that's why they got eliminated. apology accepted.

i thought your writing of Eli was fine, after you established he wasn't a Christ figure. i think maybe it was more than i personally was prepared to give the game, but you took it and ran with it and hey...that's totally your perogative. maybe because i had a character that was pretty powerful to begin with, but i think everyone wanted to be a god, ya know?

Not everyone

fair enough, oh terse one...

Just to set the record straight

quote:

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I can only assume that this week eyezoom complained about Alti's situation and they must have reacted to that by eliminating Minya and me.-Nanzar in Chronicles

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It does sound like I said you were involved in the decision but I didn't mean it that way. I am sorry about assuming anything about what happened. I should always remember that rule: assume means only to make an ASS out of U and Me.

I no longer believe there was an ulterior motive in Eli's and Minya's dispatch. I only feel that once you quit you essentially accepted a dispatch, and should have been written that way. I hope we are done with this one issue now.

quote:

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i thought your writing of Eli was fine, after you established he wasn't a Christ figure. i think maybe it was more than i personally was prepared to give the game, but you took it and ran with it and hey...that's totally your perogative. maybe because i had a character that was pretty powerful to begin with, but i think everyone wanted to be a god, ya know?

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Thank you for this response to my question. I did get a bit confused at the beginning, I wanted Eli to be more like Jesus, but I realized by the second week that that would never work. Still, I had trouble with a guy who could have so much love and faith and no real reason for it.

It's interesting that the show chose not to use the name Jesus for Eli, when they used many other real gods and prophets ie. David, Indragid, Krishna and all the Olympian gods and mythological beings. I can see why of course, but it is interesting nonetheless.

Just to set my own record straight altho it really doesnt' matter much now unless it affects the current story...
Minya's kid did not do away with Alti's powers. Dahok and Hope did. They were angry at Alti for using Eli's head to channel the spirit of Minya's kid...the two spirits mingled and thus made Gabrielle(now Bella) a bit confuzzled...good? Evil? Which one am I? AAAAA!
Anywwho just clarifying that for the record, for anyone still writing in the race.
Aside from that Nanzar, I LOVED your Eli, well you know that by now. Thanks for being such a fun race colleague.
Take care all!
kate