A Mary-Sue is a term used to describe a character made by an author who possesses traits that cause them to appear perfect or flawless, loved by all, or given special treatment and overall run the plot.
This page is in no way meant to attack characters but offers advice and tips on how to improve them or learn what to try to avoid doing. Also, keep in mind that this is objective. You may not agree with the general opinion used on this page.
Relations and Recolors
A hand-in-hand trait for Mary-Sues. People will modify or recolor a character and claim them as related in some shape or form. Not only does this give the character some background, but it provides the author with something to build from and give them some importance to their story.
Now, it is okay to be related to official characters, but it is risky if not handled appropriately. For example, in Ojamajo Doremi, a frequent target of this will be Onpu Segawa. One fan character had this (paraphrased) info on her profile:
- "This is Onpu's older sister and a singer too! She is much better than her and tries giving her tips, but Onpu is very jealous because she's much cuter and more popular. Her color is a bluer shade of purple and like Onpu she is naturally talented at magic. But she is MUCH more advanced, using Dokkan level magic despite being in her season 1 form."
Now take note of the various details you see:
- The character's picture was an Onpu recolor, so she essentially resembles Onpu in all forms of physical appearance and shares several traits with her.
- This character sounds like an even better Onpu, allowing them to take her spot with little to no change to the plot.
- This character also bashes the character they are based on to make them look better by making them seem out of character.
There are times when this is acceptable, and there are ways of managing this by balancing out details in a way that don't overtake the real character and flesh out your own character. Imagine this profile written another way:
- "Onpu's older sister who wishes to become an Idol someday- just like Onpu! She enjoys performing but gets nervous in front of others. She tends to rely on Onpu for charisma tips or advice, and deep down she can be a little envious of the attention she gets. When it comes to magic she does well, being graceful on the broom and twirling her wand!"
Honestly, read both of them and ask yourself which one sounds more interesting? What girl would you want to read about? The Perfect older sister everyone admires for being the better clone of Onpu, or a sister who desires fame but is unsure of how to find her talents and seeks help from Onpu?
Common Mary-sue Traits
When it comes to a Mary-sue type, they are all generally the same in some form. Whether it be through color choices, appearance, or quirks. Mary-sues have several "category" types but when broken down are essentially a clone of a pre-existing character or someone way over the top who needs to be toned down.
Typical traits consist of:
Colors
Usually, when someone recolors, they may be lazy about it by darkening or lighting the colors of the character they are editing from. Not everyone does this though, and no matter what the series is, any character whose theme color is "rainbow" is regarded as Mary-Sue by most. She can like rainbows or have it as an aesthetic sure, but it doesn't mean she has to be one.
In terms of this series, if a girl has more than 2 main colors (not counting accents), she could be viewed as one by some fans. In Ojamajo Doremi each girl has one theme color, with accents of the same color that are lighter/darker. Two different colors should be the maximum used if desired.
Japanese Name and Setting
It is common for Mary-Sue characters to have an overly long name or go with a name that sounds amazingly over-the-top and fake if used in real life or in the setting of the series. For example, naming a girl Crystal Moonlight Rose. That doesn't sound like a name, it sounds like a perfume.
Sometimes this is okay, for example, a girl might have a Japanese name because she came from Tokyo and currently lives elsewhere. Or perhaps she has Asian heritage. But a lot of times when this happens, this isn't the case. It's simply non-Japanese fans trying to look cool or more "authentic".
Take this example:
- "Mayumi-chan, wait up!" Mayumi Hajime came to a stop and turned to giggle as Mitsu rushed to catch up to her. "Kawaii!" Mayumi cooed, then she pointed to her head. "Mitsu-chan, did you forget to take off your Neko-mimi headband? You know how the school feels about it." Mitsu nodded and clasped her hands. "I was in such a hurry I forgot to remove it, I was trying it on before I got ready..." The girls were surprised when some passing-by students began to compliment her. "Sugoi!" "Koneko-chan!"
This looks fine and cute. But some people can find this annoying if its not in a proper setting or feels too forced. This isn't to say you can't do this, but proper balance is the way to go about it.
Here is a toned-down, effective example:
- "Mayumi-san! Wait up!" Mayumi Hajime came to a stop and turned to giggle as her friend Mitsu rushed to catch up to her. "Cute!" Mayumi cooed, then she pointed to her head. "Mitsu-chan, did you forget to take off your cat-ear headband? You know how the school feels about it. Mitsu nodded and clasped her hands. "I was in such a hurry I forgot to remove them, I was trying it on before I got ready... I saw them online, "kawaii neko-mimi" in black." The girls were surprised when some passing-by students began to compliment her. "Wow!" "You look so cute! Like a kitten!"
Appearance
You can tell if you have a Mary-Sue on your hands if their description reads something along the lines of "She's so cute and everyone thinks so! She's so well liked and everyone remarks on her natural beauty!"
When their appearance is described in such glowing terms and appears to be the characters only defining trait this is because the author thinks their physical appearance is overly important. On the other hand, over-elaborate details can be the ire of some fans as well. For example:
- Reika is very beautiful with a frame that developed fairly early. Her large, crystal blue eyes, shinier than pools of deep water and very long, shiny purple hair that reaches her waist with each section perfectly curled. Her looks are normally complimented and she wears expensive clothing, her mother is a designer. With her appearance being noted from miles away, she often gets love confessions but always turns them down! lol!
Take note of how descriptive and unnecessary half of that statement was. You also do not a million words to describe relatively easy details- especially when they have nothing to do with the actual physical appearance and sound like you're waxing poetic.
To counter this, try to think of the character more realistically. You can still get the same impact but not look like an attention seeker and provide further explanation on other aspects. Such as this example:
- Reika is a young and cute girl who developed a bit early. She has crystal blue eyes and purple waist-length hair with curled tips. Her mother is a seamstress so she gets to wear all sorts of different styles.
By doing this the character can still be viewed as cute and pretty without forcing the reader to like her. Her hair and eyes have been described well enough to picture them properly, and because everything wasn't focused on just saying "I'm pretty" in every sentence, we learn about the girl herself.
Personality
Usually, when recoloring a character, the lazy approach is to either copy said character, make them sound better than said character, or genuinely make them entirely perfect with no flaws. This can cause the character to come off as very fake and boring and leave the reader no reason to want to get to know them.
For example:
- Amy is perfect and has no faults. She never messes up and wins everyone with a charming wink and grace. She likes to cheer others up and does so with just a mere smile. She has a rare temper but look out when it strikes! She can beat up the strongest man who dares mess with her. She is also really smart, so she has many admirers and is often approached for help.
Boring right? She has no flaws or any real interesting facts to pull someone in.
Now keep in mind, there are ways to keep these traits but make people want to get to know her. Everyone has their own faults, including our characters. Let's try to put some in:
Amy struggles to admit her shortcomings and faults and has a tendency to act perfect and studious when at school. She tries to avoid messing up and making mistakes, but this usually causes her stress. She is genuinely nice and well-liked though because she enjoys making others happy and helping them. She can get angry if she sees someone bothering others or upsetting them, leading her to confront them.
Abilities
- "She was already at a dokkan level while in her first season witch apprentice form! She never needed a wand to cast magic and her crystal never shatters despite how many times she's used it to heal people."
Already wrong. Just because your Ojamajo is your character doesn't mean she can get away with things nobody else could. She should have magic that matches her current form of apprentice level, and think about her personally. Is she a girl who dislikes school? Maybe she isn't good at casting her spells or doing exams, but she could be good at flying. Try to creatively imagine how she would do with various aspects.
Examples
Final notes
If you see someone who you think may have these qualities, please try to remember to be nice about it when telling them. That won't guarantee that the owner may understand or try to be nice back, but you will feel better knowing you didn't mock them for it and tried to help.