OTHELLO REWORKING - PSYCHOMACHIA

OTHELLO REWORKING - PSYCHOMACHIA

I kind of had this bunny for as long as this month of April. The struggle between good and evil in Othello reimagined as a psychomachia gothic fantasy (think Angel's Friends or Dokidoki! Precure), with an animesque bent and an Academy of Adventure/Boarding School setting (like Winx Club or the Potterverse). And a strong influence from The Book of Life and The Corpse Bride, the two great sinister fairytales of the new millennium...
A group of muggles, all of them outsiders at heart, at what can be any Western private boarding school (actually, an elaborate university campus) are caught in the crossfire between the two new students, in reality envoys from other realms, who have taken a sky-high bet on whether mortals are more prone to follow their hearts or their heads. Milla and Yago also appear to have some sexual tension going on like La Catrina and Xibalba... (The opening is partly taken from there, partly from the Book of Job or Faust ;) )

STUDENTS

MORTALS

• Aurelio Cruz: The dark-skinned adopted child of important campus staff, was once a war orphan and a child soldier. Now, as a young adult, he is basically something in between Oberyn Martell and Varrick, when it comes to appearance, reputation, AND personality. His left eye is cataracted due to war injuries, and he wears a patch over it, which, together with his charming and dashing façade, leads to the whole campus naming him male council president and dubbing him "the Pirate Prince/Pirate King/Lord of the Tides" and similar noms de guerre. But at heart he is bleeding, traumatized by the loss of his village, friends, and family, and by his loss of innocence... including being sexually forced by a commanding officer. As the series unfurls, his façade crackles and his repressed sinister side gradually comes to light, as he clings to Yago, who plays him like a fiddle... Left-handed. Enneatype 8.
• Désirée Oriana "Desi" Bell: The class queen, council co-president, and nice faux-alpha b*tch, though with a prominent intellectual/high culture streak. Cool, tall, and dignified, she is basically a blond Minami Kaido or a carbon copy of Cornelia Hale, down to the black cat called Napoleon (Desi's is even surnamed Bonaparte!). An only child of divorced celeb parents, was once a Cadet Captain. Falls in love with Aurelio and vice versa, leading to them becoming fiancés, but at first knows nothing of her lover's sinister side... until experience shows her the painful truth. Right-handed. Enneatype 2 or 9.
• Christian "Chris" Leutnant: Desi's childhood friend and brother figure, both of them (only children) having always seen each other as the siblings they never had. However, with the passing of years, they have gradually become a little detached, sharing little but their common schoolwork and intellectual interests, as well as being tennis and fencing partners. Was once a Cadet Lieutenant. He's the typical nice "guy next door" like Joel Crawford in Wizardess Heart, physically resembling Enjolras or Jasper Whitlock, but with the sunny personality of Shiroya in Destiny Ninja 2. At first Aurelio's right hand and the third wheel in the relationship with Desi... Fallen from grace after an incident caused by Iago (and involving a drink laced with meth), he tries to pick up the pieces. Right-handed. Enneatype 6.
• Rainer Bräutigam: AKA "the Lightning Dragon," but in private the "Prince of the Friendzone." The Roderigo character, who is patterned after Gaston Legume and Kanji Tatsumi. This ostensibly tough guy of a martial artist physically resembles something in between Gaston and Kanji, and shares the latter's sexual insecurities as he grows gradually closer and closer to Yago... but at first he believes he is straight and tries to get close to Desi always in vain, leading him to fret like Gaston for Belle. Yago's closing in on him and his own secret artistic hobbies lead to Rainer finding his true self... Left-handed. Enneatype 4.
• Whitney Gray: Britney's platinum blonde twin sister and part of Desi's girl posse as her beta b*tch/right hand. She reports for the school paper and keeps a blog, as well as having a crush on Chris. Emo, based upon Brittany Biskit. Is far more in love with Chris and more romantic than her twin. Right-handed. Enneatype 2.
• Britney Gray: Whitney's raven-haired twin sister and part of Desi's girl posse as her gamma b*tch/left hand. She is the Varys (knowledge broker) on campus, and she writes a burn book in her spare time, as well as having a crush on Chris. Emo, based upon Whittany Biskit. Is far more sarcastic and jaded than her twin. Left-handed. Enneatype 9.
• Alex Niall: a tough and cool bifauxnen patterned after Naoto Shirogane (not to mention her Kubrick namesake), who later on becomes Rainer's love interest. She is the daughter of the Nialls'. Right-handed. 

OF THE DARK PEOPLE

Yago Izquierdo: an envoy of the Dark People and one of the two supernatural new students. A cool and reserved albino bishónen resembling partly an evil Rhaegar Targaryen, ostensibly more like Yayoi in Destiny Ninja 2, with the same suavity and irony. But at heart he is a sinister psychopath based upon Nakago. His similarity to Rhaegar is frequently noted across the series. He believes that all humans are meant to follow their hearts, which puts him at odds with Milla, to whom he is tied by some kind of frenmity, and which leads to their high-stakes bet (think of La Catrina and Xibalba). Is The Corrupter and master psychopath of the cast, and displays a wide variety of skills, from cooking meth to assassination in cold blood, and believes that emotions only exist to tie people up and weigh them down, being himself incapable of experiencing any real-life emotions, only of imitating them... he is, at heart, curious about emotional life, which leads to this "experiment." As the series progresses, he gradually becomes Aurelio's right hand and the de facto leader of the student council as "power behind the throne." Left-handed. Enneatype 7/3 (depending on whether his sinister true self or his charming, loyal façade).

OF THE HIGHER INSTANCES

Milla Wright: an envoy of the Higher Instances and one of the two supernatural new students. She takes the appearance of a dark-skinned strawberry-blonde tomboy, something like a fairer-haired Yoko Littner, with the hyperactivity of Ty Lee and the irony of Tyrion Lannister. Yet the most relevant inspiration from her character comes from the eccentric Luna Lovegood, and from Alicia Rue in SAO Alfheim. The strange and misunderstood Milla soon grows close to Desi and becomes an oneesama figure to her. She believes that all humans are meant to follow their heads, which puts her at odds with Yago, to whom he is tied by some kind of frenmity, and which leads to their high-stakes bet (think of La Catrina and Xibalba). Unlike Yago, she is capable of feeling and sympathizing with others, which makes their relationship even more strained. Her belief in humanity is that children are innocent at heart and society/coming of age corrupts them. She also has a white otherworldly catrabbit called Josephine, who romances Napoleon. Right-handed. Enneatype 7.

TEACHERS:

• Headmistress Ermengarde Bräutigam: The headmistress and Rainer's mother. Resembles a younger Yume Mochizuki or Olenna Tyrell. Personalitywise, she also resembles them. Just like Mrs. Tatsumi, she is supportive of her boy's creative streak.
• Vincent: Ermengarde's late husband, of whom she speaks quite affectively. Was blood-related to the Bell family.
• Deputy Head Clarissa Cruz: Aurelio's adoptive mother, connected with the Right Party to which Mr. Bell belongs. Resembles a cross between Glynnis Payne and Eglantina Plum or Ellaria Sand. Was once a military officer and Claudio's right hand.
• Ediltrudis Bräutigam: The drill-sarge-like phys ed trainer and Rainer's aunt. Resembles Mrs. Trunchbull. Is far harsher towards Rainer, being a phys ed Education Auntie of sorts.
• Renée Bell: The dark-haired French ballet teacher on campus, Desi's mother, married first to Étienne and then to Astrid. She and Étienne are amicable exes and see one another often as friends, whenever he has time. Like Katharina, she expected her daughter and Chris to fall in love and get married, but ultimately shows her support for Desi's relationship with Aurelio. Resembles something in between Masumi Kaido and Elizabeth Hale (Cornelia's mother).
• Astrid Vikström/Bell: The school doctor, she marries Renée early on, becoming Desi's stepmother. Is like a blond and sexy/buxom version of Mrs. Yuki of Ojamajo fame, based on the nurse from Animaniacs.
• Alistair and Glynnis Niall: the Thénardier-esque cafeteria (female) chef and (male) sous-chef, based partly on Dextra and Nistro in Zexal, partly on the Thénardiers as played by Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham-Carter. Were once members of the Right Party, before retiring due to the pressure of statescraft.
• Claudio Cruz: Aurelio's adoptive father, a war veteran and the instructor of the martial arts activity; knows about Aurelio having been forced by an officer. (Was once the officer who raped child Aurelio, though at first he did not know, his wife having been the once who carried out the adoption).

OUTSIDE THE FACULTY:

• Étienne Bell: Desi's father, an MEP for a rightish party. Resembles Tsukasa Kaido without the moustache, and is rather gentlemanly and conservative. Pretty detached due to affairs of state. At first, Desi thought he would not approve of her relationship with Aurelio, but then, he emails her to "follow her heart" (compare Minami Kaido's worry that her parents may not approve of her new career choice). Is still friends and amicable exes with Renée.
• Katharina Leutnant: Chris's mother and Fritz's former wife, an MEP and a renowned creative publicist, is also a good university and society friend of all the adult leading cast, as well as endowed with remarkable fashion sense. Her mannerisms are like those of a classic gold digger villainess in family films (she even looks like Glynnis Payne or Meredith Blake!), but don't let it fool you, for she is good at heart and something of an adult child. She and Renée expected their children to fall in love and marry one another.
• Friedrich Theodor Gottfried Maria Leutnant: Chris's estranged father, the headmaster/commandant of a military academy where Chris and Desi studied from childhood into the present (young adulthood). Is the typical straitlaced and disciplined military officer.

PETS:

• Napoleon Bonaparte: Desi's black male kitten.
• Josephine de Beauharnais: Milla's albino female catrabbit (think of a Manx cabbit, but with bunny ears and ruby eyes!)